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Earthquake Preparedness
Strategies and measures taken to ensure safety and readiness of individuals and communities during seismic events, including creating emergency kits, developing family communication plans, and securing heavy items.
Tsunamis
Large and powerful ocean waves typically caused by underwater geological disturbances, such as earthquakes or volcanic eruptions, which can cause significant coastal flooding and destruction.
Volcanic Eruptions
Explosive geological events where magma from the Earth's interior escapes to the surface, often accompanied by ash clouds, lava flows, and pyroclastic flows.
Plate Boundaries
Zones where tectonic plates converge, diverge, or slide past each other, producing various geological phenomena such as earthquakes, volcanic activity, and mountain-building.
Sea Floor Spreading
The geological process where new oceanic crust is formed through magma rising from the mantle at mid-ocean ridges, leading to the gradual movement of continents.
Harry Hess
A pioneering geologist who introduced the theory of sea floor spreading in the 1960s, significantly altering our understanding of plate tectonics and oceanic renewal.
Convection Current
The continuous movement of fluid or gas caused by the uneven distribution of heat, resulting in circulating patterns that drive tectonic plate movement.
Mid-Atlantic Ridge
The longest underwater mountain range in the world, formed by the divergent movement of tectonic plates, characterized by volcanic activity and rich marine biodiversity.
Paleomagnetism
The branch of geology that studies the magnetic properties of rocks, aiding in understanding Earth's historical magnetic field changes and plate tectonics.
Magnetic Reversal
The phenomenon in which the Earth's magnetic field reverses its polarity, with the magnetic north and south poles switching positions over geological time.
Geological Evidence
Physical clues such as fossils, rock formations, and climatic patterns that support the theory of plate tectonics and the movement of continents over time.
Fossils
The preserved remains or evidence of ancient organisms, providing insight into the history of life on Earth and supporting theories of evolution and continental drift.
Glacial Deposits
Sedimentary traces left by past glaciers that indicate historical climate conditions and the movement of landmasses during ice ages.
Coal Deposits
Accumulated layers of carbon-rich plant material formed in ancient, warm, swampy environments, recognized as significant energy resources.
Continental Drift
The scientific hypothesis proposing that continents have moved over geological time across the Earth's surface, reshaping the locations of landmasses.
Mesosaurus
A freshwater reptile whose fossil remains have been found on separated continents, providing critical evidence for the theory of continental drift.
Magnetic Polarity
The orientation of magnetic minerals within rocks that is linked to historical changes in the Earth's magnetic field, which can be used to understand tectonic plate movements.
Tectonic Plates
Large, rigid slabs of Earth's lithosphere that float on the semi-fluid asthenosphere below, moving gradually and interacting at their boundaries to create geological phenomena.
Seafloor Age
The finding that the age of ocean rocks increases with distance from mid-ocean ridges, demonstrating the process of sea floor spreading and plate tectonics.
Echo Sounders
Acoustic devices used in marine exploration that emit sound waves to map the seafloor and identify geological structures and features beneath the ocean.
Divergent Boundaries
Regions where two tectonic plates are moving apart, allowing for the creation of new oceanic crust through volcanic activity and forming mid-ocean ridges.
Oceanic Crust
The thinner and denser part of Earth's crust that underlies the oceans, composed mainly of basalt and formed at mid-ocean ridges.
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