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| the science that studies Earth |
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| From hypothesis (scientific guess) to theory (guess backed up by scientific support) to law |
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| supposed to be 4.5 years old |
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| a representation of some aspect of nature based on a set of hypotheses |
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| information preserved in rocks formed @ various times throughout history |
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| Principle of Uniformitarianism |
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| The present is the key to the past |
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| a large meteoroid that impacts Earth |
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| The hypothesis that the origin of Earth could be traced back to a rotating cloud of gas and fine dust |
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| the transformation of random chunks of primordial matter into a body whose interior is divided into concentric layers that differ from one another both physically and chemically |
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| Iron and other heavy elements like nickel sank to form this |
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| Molten materials which were less dense than the parent substances from which they separated formed this |
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| Between core and crust is this, which forms the bulk of the solid Earth |
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| All the parts of our planet and all their interactions |
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| Lithosphere (lithos meaning stone) |
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| The Earth's strong outer shell formed by the cooling of the surface |
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| Asthenosphere (asthenes meaning weak) |
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| The hot, weak layer of Earth |
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| The lithosphere is not a continuous shell; it is broken into about a dozen large "plates" that move over Earth's surface at rates of a few cm per year. Each plate acts as a distinct rigid unit that rides on the asthenosphere, which also is in motion. The lithosphere that forms a plate may be just a few kilometers thick in volcanically active areas and perhaps 200 km thick or more beneath the older, colder parts of the continents. |
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| The movement of the plates is the surface manifestation of convection in the mantle |
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| All living organisms and the organic matter they produce |
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| Traces of organisms of past geologic ages that have been preserved in the crust |
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| The process by which plants and other green organisms use chlorophyll and the energy from sunlight to produce carbohydrates from carbon dioxide and water |
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