Science Chapter 4 Sec 1 & 2 Plate Tectonics
Terms
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- Journey to the Center of the Earth
- As you travel to the center of the Earth, temperature and pressure change.
- Seismic Wave
- A vibration that travels through earth carrying the energy released during an earthquake
- Conduction
- The transfer of heat by direct contact.
- What causes convection currents?
- Differences of temperature and density within a fluid. They occur in the mantle.
- Crust
- The crust is the thin layer of solid rock that surrounds the Earth. It is thinnest under the ocean (mostly dense rock called basalt) and thickest under mountains (on the continents, mostly granite).
- Earth's Interior- 4 parts
- Crust, mantle, outer core, inner core
- Indirect Evidence
- Geologists must rely on indirect evidence to gather information about Earth's interior. One piece of evidence they use is seismic waves. Using speed and direction of the seismic waves gives geologists data that is used to describe Earth's layers.
- Asthenosphere
- The layer of the mantle just below the lithosphere is the asthenosphere (asthenes means "weak"). This layer is more malleable and softer than the lithosphere due to increased heat and pressure.
- Density
- The amount of mass in a given space; mass per unit volume.
- Convection in Earth's Mantle
- Earth's mantle responds to heat from the core. Hot columns of mantle rise through the asthenosphere and push cooler material out of the way. The cooler material sinks back down to the asthenosphere.
- Mantle
- The mantle is the layer just below the crust starting at 5-40 km. The mantle becomes hotter and pressure increases as you descend through the mantle. The mantle is about 3,000 km. thick.
- Radiation
- The transfer of heat through empty space such as the sunlight or the flame of a campfire is an example of radiation. There is no direct contact with radiation.
- Outer Core and Inner Core
- The outer core is a thick liquid and the inner core is a dense ball of solid metal. The inner and outer core make up 1/3 of the Earth's mass (about 33%), but only 15% of its volume.
- What is heat transfer?
- The movement of heat. There are 3 ways - radiation, conduction, convection
- Convection Currents
- Convection currents are the flow that is created due to this heat transfer. As a fluid is heated, it becomes less dense and rises. The cooler fluid (at the surface) is denser and sinks causing a current.
- Core
- The core is made up of two parts - the outer core & inner core. Iron and nickel make up both parts.
- Pressure
- Pressure is the force pushing on a surface or area. Gravity pulling on the rock causes the layers above to push on lower layers. This is the reason for the increase in pressure as you decend deeper into the earth.
- Lithosphere
- Includes the crust and the rigid, uppermost part of the mantle (litho means "stone") and this layer is about 100 km thick.
- Earth's Magnetic Field
- It is believed that metals in the core contain a weak charge. Convection currents in the liquid outer core force the inner core to spin faster than the rest of the planet. This current and spin produce a magnetic field which causes the Earth to act like a bar magnet.
- Convection
- The transfer of heat through a heated fluid is convection.