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| A fan-shaped mass of stream-deposited sediments (grain-sized to boulder-sized) that is deposited where a stream flows from a narrow canyon onto a plain or valley floor |
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| The broad slope formed by coalescing alluvial fans, often continuous with the pediment |
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| Slow, nearly continuous downslope movement that is induced by either freeze/thaw cycles or wet/dry cycles |
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| Dense, fluid mixtures of rock, sand, mud, and water that can move rapidly (10s of miles per hour). They have the consistency of concrete and can be highly destructive |
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| the art of measuring the height of points on the earth's surface. |
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| An isolated peak jutting out from its own pediment and talus |
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| sudden downslope movements of rock or debris |
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| magma that reaches the earth's surface |
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| describes the sense of slip along a fault. Here, crust on one side of the fault moves to the left with respect to an observer who is located on crust on the other side of the fault. |
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| molten rock, usually rich in silica and containing dissolved gases |
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| downhill movement of soil and rock under the direct influence of gravity: landslides |
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| a fault that accommodates downward motion of the hanging wall with respect to the foot wall |
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| the process of mountain building. Distinct phases of mountain building are frequently assigned names such as the Taconic orogeny. |
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| a gently inclined erosional surface carved into bedrock at the base of a mountain range |
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| a desert basin that serves as a temporary lake bottom for precipitation that falls on the surrounding watersheds. |
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| fragment of rock ejected during a volcanic eruption |
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| a volcano that has subsided beneath the ocean surface and is no longer active. |
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| loose angular rock fragments that spill down a steep slope |
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| fluid does not flow easily. |
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| a destructive process by which rocks and minerals are broken down by exposure to atmospheric agents such as water and wind. |
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| energy released during a sudden brittle rupture of the earth's crust or mantle |
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| the point on the Earth's surface directly above the focus of an earthquake |
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| composite cone; typical a volcano that consists of intermixed layers of lava flows and poorly consolidated volcanic material. easily recognized by their often beautiful symmetrically-shaped cones. (Mt. Fuji, Mt. St. Helens) |
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| short and fat volcanoes that have gradual slopes (Mauna Loa, Hawaii) |
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| tephra cone: resemble piles of sand, because they are made of loose materal and smallish. almost miniature stratovolcanoes |
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| Dome volcanos typically form from sticky viscous magmas that are squeezed onto the surface. kind of look like blobs from surface. |
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| most common along seafloor spreading centers |
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| where volcanoes mostly occur |
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| above subducting slabs and mid-ocean ridges |
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| geologically fast: a few thousand years or longer. usually built from the top down |
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| less than that of most mountains |
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| reasons for volcanic lifetime |
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| self destruction (huge eruptions causing caldera) and top heavy structure makes it vulnerable to weathering |
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| viscosity of magma in volcanoes depends on |
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| temperature and concentration of silica |
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| low viscosity, 45-52% silica |
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| flows easily; les than 45% silica |
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| higher viscosity, 52-63% silica |
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| highest viscosity, 63% or higher silica |
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| global earthquake deficit |
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| We now know that far too few earthquakes have occurred this century to account for all of the slip that is occurring along plate boundaries. In fact, earthquakes appear to account for only about 30% or less of plate slip |
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| are the waves of energy caused by the sudden breaking of rock within the earth or an explosion |
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| move along the surface of the planet like ripples on water |
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| travel through the earth's inner layers. arrive before surface waves (p and s waves) |
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| fastest wave (first to arrive). move through earth like a compressing slinking. |
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| An S wave is slower than a P wave and can only move through solid rock, not through any liquid medium. move like a rope. |
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| first arriving surface wave, moves side-to-side |
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| up-and-down motion Most of the shaking felt from an earthquake is due to the Rayleigh wave, which can be much larger than the other waves. last wave to arrive. |
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| Along plate edges and along faults. Mostly along the edge of the oceanic and continental plates. |
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| measurement used for magnitude of earthquakes |
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| strain accumulation and release along a single fault patch |
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| A body immersed in a fluid is buoyed up with a force equal to the weight of the displaced fluid. |
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| in a fluid, the pressure (i.e. force per unit area) exerted by the overlying material is equal everywhere at a given depth |
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| Newton's Second Law of Motion |
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| F = ma (a = 9.8 when talking about earth's gravitational pull) |
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| about 5.6 times taller than the "tip of the iceberg" |
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| erosion of a rock due to impact of grains carried by wind, water, or ice |
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| downslope movement via rockfalls, landslides, etc |
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| freeze/thaw cycle within rocks which can break rocks apart from inside |
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| expansion and contraction via heating and cooling |
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| molecules and elements in rocks and minerals dissolve directly into water |
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| reaction between oxygen, water, and iron-bearing minerals that breaks down minerals |
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| complex weathering reaction that forms clays, the primary constituent of soils |
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| Glaciers are large masses of ice that rest on or adjacent to a land surface and typically move |
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| type of glacier: a lobe of ice that is formed when a valley glacier extends beyond its confining walls and spreads out over the adjacent lowland |
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| type of glacier: A long, narrow ribbon of glacial ice that is confined by the walls of a valley |
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| a laterally extensive glacier that consists of ice domes and outlet glaciers |
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| cirque or mountain glacier |
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| typically small glaciers that are located in armchair-shaped hollows in the mountain |
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| shallow but huge marine sea inhabits North America |
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| continental sea recedes and Laramide orogeny began |
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| First contact of the Pacific and North American Plates, San Andreas fault born |
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| Basin-and-Range extension continued |
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