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| Part of the Earth's interior between crust and the core, filled with hot semi-liquid or liquid rock known as magma. |
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| Part of Earth consisting of the crust and the top section of the solid mantle. |
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| Earth's lithosphere consists of large plates of crust and rock that float over the semi-liquid mantle. These are known as tectonic plates. Tectonic plates move slowly, but over millions of years they can move great distances. Their movements are responsible for building up mountains, creating rift valleys, and causing earthquakes and volcanoes. Many scientists believe the present continents once fit together into a single giant continent, which gradually separated. |
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| Spread of heat through the movement of a liquid substance, as hotter liquid rises to the top and cooler liquid sinks to the bottom |
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| Force of attraction that the Earth exerts on an object on or near its surface. Gravity also contributes to the movement of tectonic plates. |
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| Tectonic plates in continental (land) areas. When 2 continental plates collide, they slowly push into one another, creating upward folds that become mountain chains. |
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| Mountain chain in Asia created by continental plates pushing into one another. They are the tallest mountains in the world, and separate the Indian Subcontinent from the rest of Asia. |
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| Long valleys between parallel ridges of mountains, caused by tectonic plates moving away from each other. |
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| Break in the Earth's crust caused by tectonic plate movement. |
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| Vibrations in Earth caused by tectonic plate movement. |
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| Waves sent by an earthquake. |
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| Instrument used by scientists to measure seismic waves. |
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| Immense ocean wave of destructive force caused by an earthquake under or near the ocean. |
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| Zone of volcanoes and earthquakes around the Pacific Ocean. |
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| Wearing down of rocks at the Earth's surface by the actions of wind, water, ice and living organisms. |
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| Process by which rock, sand, and soil are broken down and carried away. |
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| Process in which sediment is carried and left by wind or water. A delta forms when sand and other sediment are carried downstream and deposited where a river empties into a lake, sea or ocean. |
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| Flat highland whose sides drop suddenly because of erosion. |
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| Long, low area between ranges of mountains, hills or uplands. |
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| Deep gorge or ravine between cliffs, often carved by a river. |
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| Part of the Earth's surface that is covered in water. |
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| Process by which solar energy heats the Earth's oceans, seas and lakes causing some of the surface water to evaporate into the atmosphere; water condenses into droplets that form clouds, and later drops fall back to the Earth's surface as precipitation. |
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| When water in the atmosphere falls back to the Earth's surface in the form of rain, snow, or hail. |
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| Regular rise and fall of the ocean and other bodies of water on the Earth's surface caused by the gravitational pull of the moon. |
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| Movements of the ocean's waters at the surface and below. |
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| Current of water heated by the sun that moves away from the equator, carrying heat energy both north and south. |
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| Average weather of a region over a period of years. |
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| Conditions in the atmosphere closest to Earth, including humidity, temperature, wind and precipitation. |
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| Height, or altitude, above sea level. |
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| Different climate types that exist at different altitudes in the same area. |
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| Storms that occur in tropical regions in the late summer and early fall when the ocean water is very warm. |
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| Part of the Earth's surface with all life. |
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| Distinct geographic regions with their own particular types of plant and animal life. |
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| Temperate Deciduous Forest |
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| Forests in mid-latitude regions where there is ample rain, moderate temperatures, and cool winters. Trees change colors in fall and lose their leaves in the winter. |
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| Umbrella-like cover created by large trees that cover the area below with their. leaves |
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