GEO exam 1

Research indicates that Earth is really, really old; it formed approximately ____ years ago

46 billion

aporoximately how far away from the Earth from the Moon?

237 thousand miles

Approximately how far away is the earth from the sun

90 million miles

what is the approximate circumference of earth at the equator

24 thousand miles

how far is he center of the Earth beneath your feet?

4,000 miles

in the releam of science, this is an explanation that is as close to “fact“ than we can get and tells us why something will happen

theory

in the realm of science, this may be described as a tentative explanation

hypothesis

this type of melting occurring beneath the Hawaiian islands

heat transfer

due to the thinning of the lithosphere, this type of melting is occuring beneath the African rift valley and the mid-atlantic ridge

decompression melting

this type of melting is occuring beneath the cascade range volcaoes in the Pacific northwest

flux

an example of ancient collisional mountains in the US would be___

appalachian mountains

earth’s magnetic field is important to life of Earth, it protects us from ___

radiation

____ is an example of a majestic rift valley volcano in Africa

Mt. Kiliminjaro

This refers to space and everything it contains, including the third rock from the Sun

universe

we live in the ___ galaxy

Milky way

these are relatively small rocky metallic objects that orbits the sun

Asteroids

temperature and pressure at Earth’s center probably reach ___ ad ___

6,000 C and 3.6 million atm

From left to right, correctly label each section of this slice of the Earth. Note that 1 starts at the surface of the Earth and 6 ends at the center of the Earth

Crust, upper mantle, transition zone, lower mantle, liquid outer core, solid inner core

the layer of Earth with the greatest mass per unit volume is the ___

inner core

wegner’s theory of Continental Drift was rejected by American Geologists because ___

he could not conceive of a valid mechanism that would cause continents to shift positions

the total amount of oceanic plate consumption on Earth equals the amount of ___ on Earth

seafloor spreading

In the atlantic ocean, the youngest seafloor lies adjacent to ____

the mid-ocean ridge

As one moves from the Mid-Atlantic ridge towards North america, the thickness of the seafloor sediments ____

increases

the oceans are located where thet are because oceanic lithosphere ____ than continental lithosphere

is more dense

____ are places where plumes of mantle rock cause anamalous volcanism

hotspots

the volcanoes of Japan represent the ____ associated with the Pacific- Eurasian plate subduction

Island arcs

this type of continental margin has continental crust that is thinner than normal and is characterized by a wide continental shelf

passive margin

a volcanic arc formed over a convergent boundary may be seen in ____

oregon

___ occured north of India as it converged to Asia

subduction

The local upward mobement of asthenosphere beneath a mid-ocean ridge is _____ of sea-floor spreading

a consequence

this movement develops because the lithosphere of mid-ocean ridges lies at higher elevation than that of the adjacent abyssal plains

ridge-push

this movement developes because oceanic lithosphere sinks into the asthenosphere

slab-pull

the mantle contains zones of upwellings and zones of downwellings which create ___ in the mantle

convective currents

according to ___, all matter and energy was packed into an infinitesimally small point and exploded outwards 13.7 billion years ago

big bang theory

newton explained that the Sun, planets and other objects are held together by the “glue“ of ____ within the Solar System.

gravitational attraction

1) Compare and contrast the formation and location (modern and ancient) of petroleum and coal deposits in the US.

1

describe three primary means through which we generate electricity in Georgia.

natural gas, nuclear power, renewable energy

Explain the formation of our planetary system. What evidence supports the theory? Draw the planets in proper order from the Sun

Sun —> Mercury —> Venus —> Earth —> Mars —> Jupiter —> Saturn —> Uranus —Neptune

3) explain the formation of the Emperor Seamount Chain. What direction is the Pacific Plate moving?

3

4) Explain Hess’s mechanism of seafloor spreading. What evidence convinced the scientific community of its validity?

new oceanic crust is formed at mid-ocean ridges through volcanic activity, gradually spreading apart as magma rises from the mantle and solidifies upon contact with seawater.

the age progression of oceanic crust away from mid-ocean ridges, and detailed mapping of ocean floor features.

Compare and contrast ocean and continental crust. How is this difference important in terms of Plate Tectonics? **

Oceanic crust, basaltic and dense, is thinner (5-10 kilometers) and younger

continental crust, thicker (30-50 kilometers on average) and older (up to less than a billion years).

6) Describe the 6 lines of evidence Wegner used to support Continental drift?

Fit of continents: continents fit together like a puzzle (especially South America and Africa)

Fossil evidence: similar fossils of plants and animals were found on lands separated by ocean

Rock Type:similarities in rock types and geological structures across continents that are now separated by oceans—> appalachian//scottland

Climate glacial deposits found in Africa and India indicated that these regions were once located closer to the South Pole

Magnetism: magnetic minerals aligned with the Earth's magnetic field at the time of their formation.

Continental Drift: tidal forces or the rotation of the Earth may have played a role

7) Draw and label the three primary plate boundaries (include distinctive features). Give examples (actual locations) of where we see these types of plate boundaries today.

7