ESS Finals (vocab)
Terms
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- fracture
- break in rock along which there is no movement
- oceanic crust
- material that makes up the ocean floor
- intensity
- amount of damage caused by an earthquake
- divergent boundary
- boundary formed by two lithospheric plates that are moving apart
- hanging wall
- rock above a normal fault plane
- renewable resource
- substance that can be replaced
- isotope
- atom of an element that has the same atomic # but different atomic mass than another atom of that element
- intrusive igneous rocks
- rocks formed from the cooling a magma beneath the earth's surface
- chemical sedimentary rock
- rock formed from minerals that have been dissolved in water
- dike
- igneous intrusion that cuts across rock layers
- vein
- narrow band of mineral deposits in rock
- fossil
- trace or remains of a plant or an animal in sedimentary rock
- nuclear fission
- splitting of the nucleus of a large atom into smaller nuclei
- atomic number
- number of protons in an atom
- ocean trench
- deep valley in the ocean floor that forms along a subduction zone
- sill
- sheet of hardened magma that forms between and parallel to layers of rock
- gas
- physical from of matter that does not have a definite volume or shape
- phosphorescence
- ability to glow during and after exposure to ultraviolet light
- L wave
- surface or long wave; the slowest wave generated by an earthquake and the last to be recorded by a seismograph
- fossil fuel
- fuel formed from the remains of living organisms, such as coal, petroleum, and natural gas
- volcanic neck
- solidified centrral vent of a volcano
- plate tectonics
- theroy that the lithosphere is made up of plates that float on the asthenosphere & that the plates possibly are moved by convection currents
- solar collector
- device for captruing solar energy
- laccolith
- flat-bottomed intrusion that oushes over lying rock layers into an arc
- rock-forming mineral
- any common mineral that froms the rocks of the earth's crust
- igneous rock
- rock forrmed from cooled and hardened magma
- lignite
- brown coal
- elastic rebound theory
- theory that rocks that are strained past a certain point will fracture and pring back into their orginal shape
- energy level
- arrangement of electrons within the electron cloud of an atom
- sediment
- fragments that result from the breaking of rocks, minerals, and organic matter
- deformation
- bending, tilting, and breaking of the earth's crust
- crystal
- natural solid substance that has a definite geometric shape
- convergent boundary
- border formed by the direct collision of two lithospheric plates
- gemstone
- nonmetallic mineral that is brilliant and colorful when cut
- silicate mineral
- mineral that contains atoms of silicon and oxygen
- transform fault boundary
- boundary formed where two lithpospheric plates slide past each other
- lava plateau
- raised, flat-topped area made of layers of hardened lava
- porphyry
- igneous rock composed of large and small crystals
- stratification
- layering of sedimentary rock
- mercalli scale
- scale that expresses the intensity of an earthquake with a roman numeral and a description
- geothermal energy
- energy contained in and available from water heated by magma or gases within the earth
- reverse fault
- fault in which the hanging wall moves up relative to the footwall
- carbonization
- processin which plant materials are changed into carbon
- monocline
- gently dipping bend in horizontal rock layers
- seismograph
- insturment used to detect and record seismic waves
- regional metamorphism
- matamorphim that affects rocks over large areas during periods of tectonic activity
- mineral
- natural inorganic, crystalline solid found in the earth's crust
- compound
- two or more atoms that have been chemically combined
- clastic sedimentary rock
- rock made up of fragments from pre-existing rocks
- lode
- deposit formed by thick mineral veins
- Pacific ring of fire
- major earthquake zone that froms a ring around the Pacific Ocean
- nonsilicate mineral
- mineral that does not contain silicon
- matter
- sunbstance that takes up space and has a mass
- ore
- deposit of minerals from which metals and nonmetals can be profitably removed
- convection
- transfer of heat through the movement of a fluid material
- nonrenewable resource
- substance of limited supply that cannot be replaced
- compaction
- process in which air and water are squeezed out of sediments, resulting in the formation of sedimentary rock
- subduction zone
- region where one lithospheric plate moves under another
- mountain range
- group of adjacent mountains with the same general shape and struture
- crude oil
- unrefined petroleum
- double refraction
- property exhibited by transparent minerals that produce a double image of any object viewed through them
- earthquake
- vibration of the earth's crust
- compression
- stress that squeezes crystal rocks togther
- footwall
- rock below a fault plane
- metamorphic rock
- rock formed from other rocks as a result of intense heat, pressure, and chemical processes
- P wave
- primary wave; the fastest wave generated by an earthquake and the first to be recorded by a seismograph
- shearing
- stress that pushes rocks in opposite horizontal directions
- Pangea
- single landmass thought to have been the origin of all continents
- microquake
- earthquake wih a magnitude less than 2.5 on the richter scale
- hydroelectric energy
- energy produced by running water
- rift valley
- steep, narrow vally formed as lithospheric plates seperate
- mountain system
- group of adjacent mountain ranges
- placer deposit
- fragments of native metals that are concentrated in layers at the bottom of a stream bed
- breccia
- elastic sedimentary rock composed of angular fragments cemented togther by minerals
- ion
- atom or group of atoms that carries an electrical charge
- conglomerate
- sedimentary rock composed of rounded gravel or pebbles cemented togther by minerals
- liquid
- physical from of matter w/ a definite volume but no definite shape
- concretion
- nodule of rock with a different composition from that of the main rock body
- physical property
- charecteristic that is observable in a substance without changing the chemical compostion of the substance
- strain
- change in shape and volume of rocks that occurs due to stress
- electron
- subatomic particle with a negative electrical charge
- stock
- igneous intrusion w/ an area less than 100 sq. km
- rock cycle
- series of processes in which rock changes from one tyoe to another and back again
- mixture
- material that contains two or more substances that are not chemically combined
- Richter scale
- scale that expresses the magnitude of an earthquake
- atom
- smallest unit of an element
- proton
- subatomic particle w/ a positive charge
- isostatic adjustment
- up-and-down movements of the earth's crust
- contact metamorphism
- change in the structure and mineral composition of rock surrouunding an igneous intrusion
- folded mountain
- landform created when tectonic movements bend and uplift rock layers
- fault-block mountain
- mountain formed where faulting breaks the earth's crust into large bocks and the blocks are uplifted and tilted
- isostasy
- balancing of the forces pressing up and down on the earth's crust
- Mohs harness scale
- standard against which the hardness of a mineral is tested
- electron cloud
- region of space around the nucleus of an atom in which electrons may be found
- mineralogist
- scientist who specializes in the study of minerals
- evaporties
- sedimentary rocks formed from minerals left after water evaporties
- ionic bond
- bond in which electrons are transfered from one atom to another
- plateau
- large area of flat-topped rocks high above sea level
- solution
- mixture in which one substance is uniformly dispersed in another substance
- anticline
- upcurved fold in horizontal rock layers
- convection current
- movement in a fluid caused by uneven heating
- seafloor spreading
- movement of the ocean floor away from either side of a mid-ocean ridge
- peat
- brownish-black material produced by pertial decomposition of plant remains
- strike-slip fault
- fault in which the rock on either side of a fault plane slides horizontally
- periodic table
- system for classifying the elements
- luster
- light reflected from the surface of a mineral
- unfoliated
- describing a metamorphic rock without visible bands
- smog
- air pollution fromed from a mixture of ust and chemicals
- diatomic
- consisting of two atoms
- theory of suspect terranes
- theory that continents are a patchwork of pieces of land that have individual geologic histories
- epicenter
- point on the earth's surface directly above the focus of an eathquake
- mountain belt
- group of large systems
- lithosphere
- thin outer shell of the earth consisting of the crust and the rigid upper mantle
- hydrocarbon
- compound made up of atoms of carbon and hydrogen
- metamorphism
- changing of one type of rock to another by heat,pressure, and chemical processes
- streak
- color of a mineral in powder form
- asthenosphere
- zone of mantle beneath the lithosphere that consists of slowly flowing solid rock
- thrust fault
- type of reverse fault in which the fault plane is nearly horizontal rather than vertical
- foliated
- descrining a metamorphic rock w/ visible parallel bands
- silicon-oxygen tetrahedron
- four oxygen atoms arranged in a pyramid with one silicon atom in the center
- ionic compound
- compound formed through the transfer of electrons
- extrusive igneous rocks
- rocks fromed from molten lava that hardens on the earth's surface
- continental crust
- material that makes up landmasses
- Mid-Atlantic Ridge
- undersea mountain range w/ a steep, narrow valley along its center
- density
- ratio of the mass of a substance to its volume, expresses as g/cm3
- volcanic mountain
- mountain formed when molten rock erupts onto the earths surface
- batholith
- largest type of igneous intrusion, covering over 100 sq. km and reaching a depth of thousands of meters
- mid-ocean ridges
- system of undersea mountain ranges that wind around the earth
- fluorescence
- ability to glow under ultraviolet light
- alloy
- solid solution of two or more metals
- chemical bond
- froce that holds togther the atoms that make up a compound
- nucleus
- region in the center of an atom that contains the protons and the neutrons
- mass number
- sum of the numbers of protons and neutrons in an atom
- organic sedimentary rock
- rock formed from the remains of orgnisms
- fault
- break in a rock along which rock along which rocks on either side of the break move
- fault plane
- surface of a fault along which movement of rocks occurs
- tension
- stress that pulls rocks apart
- focus
- area along a fault at which slippage first occurs, initiating an earthquake
- clevage
- splitting of a mineral along smooth, flat surfaces
- stress
- force that causes pressure in rocks of the earths crust
- bituminous coal
- soft coal
- S wave
- scondary wave; a wave generated by an earthquake and the second to be recorded by a seismograph
- Panthalassa
- giant ocean surrounding pangea
- terrane
- piece of land w/ a geologic history istinct from that of the surrounding land
- inorganic
- not made up of living organisms or the remains of living organisms
- island arc
- chain of volcanic islands formed along an ocean trench
- normal fault
- fault in which the hanging wall moves down relative to the footwall
- petrochemical
- chemical derived from pertoleum
- nuclear fusion
- combination of the nuclei of a small atoms to from a larger nucleus
- tsunami
- giant ocean wave that often occurs after an earthquake with an epicenter on the ocean floor
- syncline
- downcurved fold in horizontal rock layers
- covalent compound
- compound fromed from atoms that share electrons
- graben
- long, narrow valley formed by faulting and downward slippage of a crustal block
- sedimentary rock
- rock formed from hardened deposits of sediment
- cementation
- process in which dissolved minerals left by water passing rthrough sediments bind the sediments togther
- hardness
- measure of the abiltity of a mineral to resist scratching
- continenal drift
- hypothesis stating that the continents once formed a single landmass, broke up, and drifted to their present locations
- refraction
- bending of a light ray as it passes from one substance to another
- fault zone
- group of interconnected faults
- seismic gap
- zone of rock in which a fault is locked unable to move and in no major earthquake has occured in 30years
- aftershock
- tremor that follows and is smaller than a major earthquake
- covalent bond
- bond based on the attraction between atoms that share electrons
- solid
- physical from of matter w/ a definite shape and volume
- neutron
- subastomic particle with no electrical charge
- molecule
- smallest complete unit of a compound
- folding
- permanent deformation or bending of a rock under stress
- dome mountain
- landform created when molten rock pushes up rock layers on the earth's surface and the layers then are worn away in places, leaving separate high peaks
- anthracite
- hardest form of coal