Question | Answer |
the innermost layer of the Earth made of solid metals | core |
the thin outer layer of the Earth made of solid rock | crust |
the phases of the moon that occur due to the spinning of the planet or moon on its axis | lunar cycle |
an imaginary line that runs between the North and South poles (tilted at 23.5 degrees) | axis |
a crack in the crust of the Earth along which there has been movement of the rocks on either side of the crack | fault |
the movement of sediment from one place to another by means of water, wind, or ice | erosion |
the shaking of Earth's crust that may cause destruction to buildings. It happens when there is a sudden release of pressure along a fault line in the Earth, or from volcanic activity | earthquake |
a place where one air mass meets and pushes aside another air mass | front |
water that falls to Earth's surface as rain, snow, sleet, or hail | precipitation |
materials in the environment that are useful to people | natural resource |
changes in water level at the shoreline that are caused by the pull of gravity betweeen the Earth and its moon | tides |
large rocks orbiting the Sun, most of them are located between Mars and Jupiter | asteroids |
the spinning of Earth on its axis | rotation |
a repeating of up and down or back and forth movement of matter | wave |
the change of water from one state to another as it moves betweeen Earth's surface and the atmosphere | water cycle |
a process of changing a liquid into a gas, for example, when liquid water becomes water vapor | evaporation |
the breaking down and wearing away of rock | weathering |
one of the four main phases of the moon, during which it is directly between the Earth and the Sun (completely dark) | new moon |
a solid natural material that has a crystal form and its own set of properties (rocks) | minerals |
resources that nature cannot replace quickly enough to meet people's needs | nonrenewable resource |
rock that is formed when sediments are pressed and cemented together | sedimentary rock |
an impression of, or trace of an animal or plant from a long time ago that has been preserved in the Earth's Crust | fossil |
resources that nature replaces as they are used (replaced in a short period of time) | renewable resources |
one complete orbit around the Sun | revolution |
an object that orbits a planet | satellite |
any of the four planets whose orbits lie closest to the sun and are within the asteroid belt (terrestrial planets) | Inner planets |
one object in space casting its shadow on another object in space | eclipse |
a process in which sediments are deposited or dropped in a new place | deposition |
melted rock that flows out of the ground onto Earth's surface | lava |
the Earth is divided into four main layers; the inner core, outer core, mantle, and crust | layers of the Earth |
an eruption on the Sun's surface | solar flare |
melted rock below Earth's surface | magma |
a mountain built up from hardened lava, rocks, and ash that erupted out of Earth | volcano |
the gas that surrounds a planet | atmosphere |
Earth's physical features; natural structures | landforms |
resources that are everlasting, impossible to use up | inexhaustible resource |
bits of rock, soil, sand, shell and the remains of organisms | sediments |
the sun's atmosphere made of hot gasses | Sun's corona |
rock that formed from cooled magma or lava | igneous rock |
the path that one object in space takes around another oject in space | orbit |
the sections of the Earth's cust | Tectonic plates |
planets with an orbit outside the asteroid belt (gas giants) | outer planets |
fuels formed from the remains of decayed ancient plants and animals | fossil fuels |
a layer of the Earth below the crust made of melted rock | mantle |
a sun and all the objects that move around it | solar system |
a liquid fossil fuel; also called crude oil | petroleum |