Earthquakes and Plate Tectonics
Terms
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- Plate Tectonics
- Theory that the Earth's crust and part of the upper mantle are broken into sections
- Lithosphere
- The rigid layer of Earth about 100 km thick, made of the crust and a part of the upper mantle
- Normal Fault
- Break in rock caused by tension forces where rocks above the fault surface moves down relative to rock below the fault surface
- Secondary Wave
- Wave which causes rock particles to move at right angles to the direction of wave travel, the second wave to pass through the earth after an earthquake
- Asthenosphere
- Plasticlike layer of Earth on which the lithospheric plates float and move around
- Tsunami
- Ocean waves caused by earthquakes, also known as seismic sea waves
- Liquifaction
- Occurs when wet soil acts more like a liquid during an earthquake
- Surface Wave
- Wave which causes rock particles to move in a backward rolling and side to side swaying motion, this is the most destructive earthquake wave
- Seismograph
- Instrument that measures the seismic waves from an earthquake
- Seismic Wave
- Waves created by Earthquakes
- Reverse Fault
- Break in rock caused by compression forces where rock above the fault surface moves upward relative to the rock below the fault surface
- Fault
- Surface along which rocks move and break
- Focus
- Point below the Earth's surface where energy is release during an earthquake
- Epicenter
- The point on the Earth's surface directly above the earthquake focus
- Magnitude
- Measure of the energy that is released during an earthquake
- Primary Wave
- Wave which causes rock particles to move back and forth in the same direction the wave is traveling, the first wave to pass through after an earthquake
- Strike Slip Fault
- Break in rock caused by shear forces where rocks slide past each other without much vertical movement
- Convection Current
- The entire cycle of heating, rising, cooling and sinking that occurs in the mantle
- Plates
- Large section of Earth's oceanic or continental crust and rigid upper mantle that moves around on the asthenoshpere
- Earthquake
- Vibrations produced when rocks break along a fault