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Concept of Science Final Ch.17
Dr. King Auburn University
60
Science
Undergraduate 1
04/29/2009

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Term
mountain building

erosion and transportation of sediment
Definition
what are some counter balancing forces within the Earth
Term
Vmtn = length x height x width
Definition
What is the volume of a mountain
Term
R mtn erosion = 150 m^3/yr.
Definition
Typical transportation rate for sediment in streams flowing from such a mountain (Vmtn= 3.2 x 10^10 m^3)
Term
T mtn erosion= (3.2 x 10^10m^3)/ 150 m^3/yr.
= 213 x 10^6 yr.
Definition
Time to erode away the mountain
Term
% age= 213 x 10^6 yr/ 4.55 x 10^9 yr.= ~5%
Definition
Relative to the age of the Earth how long is 213 x 10^6 yr.
Term
residual heat from accretion and heat from radioactive decay
Definition
what keeps the Earth's interior hot
Term
Volcanoes
Definition
belts where molten rock (magma) from the upper mantle or lower crust come to the surface
Term
lava
Definition
emerging liquid rock is called what?
Term
Earthquakes
Definition
belts where there are planes of weakness and breakage in brittle crustal rocks; site for potential energy converting into mechanical (seismic) energy or tsunami (seismic sea waves)
Term
a power of ten in energy (magnitude)
Definition
one step on the Richter scale of earthquakes is what?
Term
True
Definition
True or False: R=5 is ten times the power of R=4
Term
Plate Movement
Definition
physical displacement of great segments of the Earth's crust; can be directly measured using GPS and other technology
Term
Plate Tectonics
Definition
concept that the crust of the Earth is broken up into several (15) large plates, as well as several smaller ones
Term
Tectonic plate
Definition
a segment of the Earth's crust that is a rigid slab of rock ~100 km thick each of which moves on a plastic layer just below it (Earth's asthenosphere, the upper part of the mantle)
Term
mantle convection
Definition
what is the driving force of plate tectonics, especially in the asthenosphere, which drags plates along and keeps them moving
Term
Ocean floors
Definition
contain volcanic mountain ranges and spreading centers that demonstrate how it is formed at mid ocean ridges and moves away gradually from these ridges; sediment thickens toward the continents and away from mid-ocean ridges further showing a progressively younger age of ocean floor at the center of the ocean basin
Term
1) Ocean Floors
2) Record of Magnetic Reversals
3) Rock Ages
Definition
3 Evidences of Plate Tectonics
Term
basalt
Definition
magnetized rock of the ocean floor
Term
Curic temperature
Definition
the temperature at which a crystal containing Fe acquires magnetization after forming from a liquid
Term
magnetized rock of the ocean floor (basalt)
Definition
forms a record of the prevailing magnetic field of the Earth at the time it cooled from a liquid
Term
True, on average over time about once per 500 x 10^3 years
Definition
True or False: Earth's magnetic field periodically reverses itself
Term
parallel zones on opposite sides of the mid-ocean ridge; this shows sea-floor spreading
Definition
Patterns of magnetization on the sea floor are what?
Term
less than 180 x 10^6 years old
Definition
the oldest sea floor basalts are how old
Term
3 x 10^9 years old
Definition
rocks on Earth's continents are how old?
Term
about as fast as your fingernail grows: just a few cm/yr.
Definition
how fast is plate motion?
Term
T plate= D plate/ Speed plate
Definition
what is the plate travel time formula?
Term
5 cm/yr.
Definition
what is the Speed plate?
Term
7 x 10^8 cm
Definition
what is D Atlantic?
Term
(7x 10^8 cm)/(5 cm/yr)= 1.4 x 10^8 yr= 140 million years or 140 x 10^6 yr.
Definition
T Atlantic is what? ( How long to open the Atlantic Ocean?)
Term
Pangaea
Definition
supercontinent comprised of all land masses that existed about 250 to 140 million years ago
Term
Divergent
Definition
new plate material (rock) is formed here; site of volcanism, shallow low-magnitude earthquakes, and features formed by tension (pulling apart), for example, rift valleys.
Term
1) Atlantic mid-ocean ridge
2) East Pacific Rise (mid ocean ridge)
3) East African Rift Valley
4) Dead Sea-Red Sea- Gulf of Aqaba rift ocean between Africa and Arabia
Definition
four examples of a Divergents
Term
Convergent
Definition
plates come together at a rate of a few cm/yr.; crust buckles up to form folded mountain chains (the process of orogeny); sea floor crust is taken back into the Earth (the process of subduction); volcanoes form from melting during subduction; great earthquakes occur due to break up of subducting crust; ocean trenches form as a result of subduction
Term
orogeny
Definition
the process of the crust buckling up to form folded mountain chains
Term
subduction
Definition
the process of sea floor crust being taken back into the Earth
Term
1) Himalaya Mountain
2) Subduction Zone (India-Asia)
3) Andes Mountains subduction zone (South America-Pacific)
4) Cascade Mountain Subduction Zone (North America-Pacific)
5) Marianas trench subduction zone (Phillipines- Pacific)
Definition
5 examples of Convergent:
Term
Transform
Definition
where plates glide past one another along a great crustal fault zone; powerful earthquakes, but no volcanoes
Term
1) San Andreas fault zone of North America
2) Alpine fault zone of New Zealand
Definition
examples of transform:
Term
Divergent
Definition
basaltic (silica-poor) volcanoes that erupt large quantities of lava; generally non violent eruptions
Term
various mid-ocean ridges and Iceland
Definition
Examples of divergent volcanoes
Term
Convergent
Definition
silica-rich volcanoes; magma that is formed due to melting of subducting plate; violent eruptions
Term
1) Cascade volcanoes in North America (OR, WA, BC)
2) Andes volcanoes of Central and South America
3) Japan island
4) Southern Italy
Definition
examples of Convergent volcano plates
Term
Hot Spots
Definition
local (intra-plate) sites on Earth (about 30) where plumes of hot, liquid mantle rise and melt through the crust forming huge volcanoes; independent of plate boundaries
Term
1) Hawaiian Islands
2) Galapagos Islands
3) Yellowstone Park and vicinity (in the U.S.)
Definition
examples of hot spots:
Term
False: the hot spot is stationary
Definition
True or False: The plate moves over a moving hot spot
Term
Focus
Definition
site of initial earthquake motion in the Earth's crust
Term
Epicenter
Definition
map location in the surface above the focus
Term
divergent of earthquakes
Definition
shallow focus (< 10 km) and rather weak (but many occur during a year)
Term
convergent of earthquakes
Definition
shallow to deep focus (down to 200 km, the deepest that earthquakes occur); due to subducting plate breaking up; shallow earthquakes are more common than deep ones
Term
200 km
Definition
what is the deepest earthquakes occur?
Term
True
Definition
True or False: Shallow earthquakes are more common than deep ones
Term
Transform
Definition
shallow focus earthquakes that are potentially very powerful if the earthquakes are rare, but rather weak if they occur all the time
Term
Hot spots of earthquakes
Definition
shallow focus only; weak but frequent
Term
Seismology
Definition
study of earthquake vibrations and what they can tell us about the Earth itself
Term
P-waves
Definition
compressional or longitudinal waves; waves in which molecules move back and forth in the same direction as the wave moves; fast waves that travel several km/sec through solid rock, liquid, and gases
Term
S-waves
Definition
transverse waves; waves in which molecules move up and down perpendicular to the direction of wave motion; slow waves that cannot pass through a liquid or gas (only solid rock)
Term
1) Large earthquakes are used to study how the waves pass through the body of the Earth

2) The different paths of P and S are important

3) The bending of earthquake waves due to different densities must be taken into account
Definition
3 ways that we know internal layers within the Earth
Term
S Shadow zone
Definition
103 degrees left to 103 degrees right; shows S-wave exclusion and evidence of a liquid outer core
Term
P Shadow zone
Definition
103 degrees to 143 degrees on each side; shows the effect of core transit and bending
Term
Definition
P waves that pass through the core show that they core is there, including the more dense solid inner core, due to P-wave bending
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