Download Earth Study Guide

Earth Study Guide
Crust:
-
Thinnest and Coolest Layer
Contains the plates, oceans, and continents
We live here
-
Thickest Layer
Transfers heat from the core to the surface
Made of melted iron and nickel
-
Made out of melted/liquid iron and nickel
-
Made out of solid iron
Contains intense pressure
Hottest Layer
Plate Tectonics Theory:
Mantle:
Outer Core:
Inner Core:
-
-
-
Pangaea (Supercontinent): Large
land mass when all of the
continents were once joined
together about 200 million years
ago
Continental Drift Theory:
Developed by Alfred Wegener that
states the continents split apart and
moved slowly to its current
locations
Wegener’s Evidence:
o Fossils of plants and animals
of the same species on
different continents
o Rock Sequences
•
•
Plates are in constant motion
Plates move 2-15 centimeters a
year
Plates move away from each other
Plates that collide with each other
Plates that slide past each other
Forms:
Forms:
-
Ridges
Valleys
Trenches
Volcanoes
Mountains
Volcanoes
Deep Ocean Trenches
Causes:
-
Earthquakes
Earthquakes are vibrations caused by two
plates moving against each other
-
They are a release of built up
energy due to a fault (break or
fracture) in the crust
Can occur both on land and under
the oceans (causes a Tsunami)
Focus: The point where the
earthquakes start
Epicenter: The point on the earth’s
surface directly above the focus
Seismograph: Instrument used to
measure the direction, intensity,
and duration of an earthquake as
well as the location of the focus and
epicenter
Richter Scale: Common scale used to
measure earthquakes
0-3.5: Earthquakes are recorded but generally
not felt
8.0 and over: Earthquakes can cause total
destruction
Ring of Fire: Area of frequent earthquakes
and volcanoes that surrounds the Pacific
Ocean
90% Earthquakes
75% Volcanoes
Volcanoes: Mountains that form when lava, ash, rocks,
and melted material piles up and hardens
1) Cinder Cone: Not very tall and has steep sides
2) Shield: Gently sloped sides with fountain like
eruptions
3) Composite: Erupts with great force and has
alternating layers of volcanic fragments, ash, and
lava
Active: Erupts frequently
Dormant: Inactive, but may erupt
again
Extinct: Have not erupted since the
beginning of history
Magma: Molten material within the
volcano as well as the mantle
Lava: Molten material that comes out
of the volcano onto the earth’s surface
• Fault Block Mountains – Form when the continental plate
moves up and over the oceanic plate.
• Folded Mountains – Form when two continental plates
collide and their edges crumble.
• Dome Mountains – Form when the surface is lifted up by
magma, forming a bulge.
• Volcanic Mountains – Form by repeated volcanic eruptions
that build on each other.