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Earth stuctures
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| mineral | A natural, usually inorganic solid that has characteristic chemical composition and an orderly internal structure |
| element | A substance that cannot be separated or broken down into simpler substances by chemical means: all atoms of an element have the same atomic number |
| atom | The smallest unit of an element that maintains the properties of that element. |
| compound | A substance made up of atoms or ions of two or more different elements joined by chemical bonds |
| matter | Anything that has mass and takes up space |
| crystal | Natural solid substance that has a definite geometric shape |
| streak | The color of a mineral in powdered form |
| luster | The way in which a mineral reflects light |
| cleavage | In geology, the tendency of a mineral to split along specific planes of weakness to form smooth, flat surfaces. |
| weathering | The natural process by which atmospheric and environmental agents such as wind, rain and temperature changes, disintegrate and decompose. |
| erosion | The process by which wind, water, ice or gravity transports soil and sediment from one location to another. |
| deposition | This process in which material is laid down |
| igneous rock | Rock that forms when magma cools and solidifies. |
| sedimentary rock | A rock that forms from compressed or cemented layers of sediment |
| metamorphic rock | A rock that forms from other rocks as a result of intense heat, pressure, or chemical processes. |
| rock cycle | The series of processes in which rock forms, changes from one type to another, is destroyed, and forms again by geologic |
| uplift | The rising of regions of the Earth's crust to higher elevations. |
| subsidence | The sinking of regions of the Earth's crust to lower elevations. |
| rift zone | An area of deep cracks that forms between two tectonic plates that are pulling away from each other. |
| crust | The thin and solid outermost layer of Earth above the mantle. |
| mantle | The layer of rock between the Earth's and core |
| core | The central part of Earth below the mantle. |
| Pangea | The supercontinent that formed 300 million years ago is and that began to break up 200 million years ago. |
| sea-floor spreading | The process by which new oceanic lithosphere (sea floor) forms when magma rises to earth's surface at mid-ocean ridges and solidifies, as older, existing sea floor moves away from the ridge |
| plate tectonics | The theory that explains how large pieces of the lithosphere, called plate s, move and change shape. |
| tectonic plates | A block of lithosphere that consists of the crust and the rigid, outermost layer of the mantle. |
| convergent boundary | The boundary between tectonic plates that are colliding. |
| divergent boundary | The boundary between two tectonic plates that are moving away from each other |
| transform boundary | The boundary between tectonic plates that are sliding past each other horizontally |
| convection | The movement of matter due to differences in density; the transfer of energy due to the movement of matter |
| deformation | The bending, tilting, and breaking of Earth's crust; the change in the shape of rock in response to stress. |
| folding | The bending of rock layers due to stress. |
| fault | A break in a body of rock along which one block moves relative to another |
| shear stress | Stress that occurs when forces act in parallel but opposite act in parallel but opposite directions, pushing parts of a solid in opposite directions. |
| tension | Stress that occurs when forces act to stretch an object |
| compression | Stress that occurs when forces act to squeeze an object |
| earthquake | A movement or trembling of ground that is caused by a sudden release of energy when rocks along a fault move |
| focus | The location within Earth along a fault at which the first motion of an earthquake occurs |
| epicenter | The point on Earth's surface directly above an earthquake's starting point, or focus |
| tectonic plate boundary | The edge between two or more plates classified as divergent, convergent or transform by the movement taking place between two plates the plates |
| fault | A break in a body of rock along which one block moves relative to another |
| deformation | The bending, tilting, and breaking of Earth's crust; the change in the shape of rock in response to stress. |
| elastic rebound | The sudden return of elastically deformed rock to its undeformed shape |
| volcano | A vent of fissure in Earth's surface through which magma and gases are expelled |
| magma | The molten or partially molten rock material containing trapped gases produced under the Earth's surface |
| lava | Magma that flows onto Earth's surface; the rock that forms when lava cools and solidifies |
| vent | An opening at the surface of the Earth through which volcanic material passes |
| tectonic plate | A block of lithosphere that consists of the rigid, outermost part of the mantle |
| hot spot | A volcanically active area of Earth's surface, commonly far from a tectonic plate boundary |
Created by:
V.M
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