Download Origin and Structure of the Earth

November 2012
System
Closed
any part of the universe
that can be isolated for the
purpose of observing and
measuring change
a system that does not allow
matter to pass through its
boundaries, but may allow
energy to pass through its
boundaries
Open
a system that allows both matter
and energy to pass through its
boundaries
seismic
waves (caused by earthquakes or
giant man-made explosions) As waves pass
through the Earth. They encounter different
materials and change in important ways,
becoming longer, shorter, faster, or slower.
Magnetic
field
solid inner core made of iron (about 800
miles thick), liquid outer core (1370 mile
thick) composed of iron-nickel alloy, oxygen.
Magnetic Field: From the liquid outer
core: seethes and roils like water in a pan
on a hot stove.
extremely hot and high pressure solid
rock (iron-magnesium silicate, oxides)
that accounts for about 80% of Earth’s
volume, about 1750 miles thick.
outermost compositional layer of the solid
Earth, made of oxygen, silicon, and
aluminum, 0-22 miles thick
1.Continental: thick, older, and buoyant,
rocks like granite
2. Oceanic: thin, younger, and dense, rocks
like basalt