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| Very level area of the deep ocean floor, usually lying at the foot of the continental rise. |
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| A subdivision of the mantle situated below the lithosphere. Depth below 100km. Easily deformed. |
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| The gaseous portion of the planet, the planets envelope of air. |
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| The totality of lifeforms on Earth. |
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| The concept that Earth was shaped by catastrophic events of a short term nature. |
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| A system that is self contained with regard to matter. No matter enters or leaves. |
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| The portion of the sea floor adjacent to the continents. It may include the continental shelf, continental slope, and continental rise. |
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| The gently sloping surface at the base of the continental slope. |
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| The gently sloping submerged portion of the continental margin, extending from the shoreline to the continental slope. |
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| The steep gradient that leads to the deep-ocean floor and marks the seaward edge of the continental shelf. |
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| The innermost layer of Earth based on composition. It is thought to be largely an iron-nickle alloy with minor amounts of oxygen, silicon, and sulfur. |
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| That part of the continental crust that has attained stability; that is, it has not been affected by significant tectonic activity during the Phanerozoic Eon. It consists of the shield and stable platform. |
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| The very thin outer-most layer of Earth. |
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| A region in roughly the lowermost 200km of the mantle where P-waves experience a sharp decrease in velocity. |
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| The portion of sea floor that lies between the continental margin and the oceanic ridge system. This region comprises almost 30% of Earth's surface. |
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| A narrow, elongated depression of the sea floor. |
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| Aims to study Earth as a system composed of numerous interacting parts, or subsystems. |
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| Fossil Succession, Principle Of |
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| Fossil organisms succeed one another in a definite and determinable order, and any time period can be recognized by its fossil content. |
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| The science that examines Earth, its form and composition, and the changes that it has undergone and is undergoing. |
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| The solid Earth; one of Earths 4 basic spheres. |
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| Aims to understand the origin of Earth and its development throughout time. |
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| The water portion of our planet; one of the traditional subdivisions of Earth's physical environment. |
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| A tentative explanation that is then tested to determine if it is valid. |
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| THAT ROCK FROM VOLCANOES!!!!! MAGMA!!!! |
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| The solid innermost layer of Earth; about 1216km (754m) in radius. |
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| A common boundary where different parts of a system interact. |
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| The rigid outer layer of Earth, including the crust and upper mantle. |
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| Mesophere - A part of the mantle that extends from the core-mantle boundary to a depth of 660km. |
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| One of Earth's compositional layers. The solid rocky shell that extends from the base of the crust to a depth of 2900km. |
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| Rock found by the alteration of pre-existing rock deep within Earth "but still in the sold state" by heat, pressure, and/or chemically active fluids. |
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| A model of the origin of the solar system that supposes a rotating nebula of dust and gases that contracted to form the sun and planets. |
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| Negative Feedback Mechanism |
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| As used in climate change, an effect that is opposite of the initial change and tends to offset it. |
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| Oceanic "Mid-Ocean" Ridge |
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| A continuous mountainous ridge on the floor of all the major ocean basins and varying in width from 500 to 5,00 km (300 - 3,000m). The rifts at the crests of the ridges represent diverging plate boundaries. |
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| A system in which both matter and energy flow into and out of the system. Most natural systems are of this type. |
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| A layer beneath the mantle about 2270km (1410m) thick, which has the properties of a liquid. |
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| A major devision of geology that examines the materials of Earth and seeks to understand the processes and forces acting beneath and upon Earth's surface. |
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| Positive Feedback Mechanism |
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| As used in climate change, any effect that acts to reinforce the initial change. |
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| Rocks and structures are placed in their proper sequence or order. Only Chronological order matters. |
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| A model that illustrates the origin of the three basic rock types and the interrelatedness of Earth materials and processes. |
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| An isolated volcanic peak that rises at least 1000m (3300ft) above the deep-ocean floor. |
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| Rock formed from the weathered products of pre-existing rocks that have been transported, deposited, and lithified. |
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| A large, relatively flat expanse of ancient igneous and metamorphic rocks within a craton. |
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| The cloud of interstellar gas and/or dust from which the bodies of our solar system formed. |
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| The part of the craton that is mantled by relatively undeformed sedimentary rocks and underlined by a basement complex of igneous and metamorphic rock. |
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| In an undeformed sequence of sedimentary rocks, each bed is older than the one above and younger than the one below. |
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| A group of interacting or interdependent parts that form a complex whole. |
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| A well tested and widely accepted view that explains certain observable facts. |
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| From about 410km to about 660km in depth is the part of the upper mantle. |
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| The concept that the processes that have shaped Earth in the geologic past are essentially the same as those today. |
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