Earth's Development and Geology Vocabulary Flashcards

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering Chapter 1: The Development of the Earth, including astronomical origins, geological structures, plate tectonics, and key vocabulary terms.

Big Bang Theory

The scientific theory stating that the universe began as a tiny point almost 14 billion years ago and suddenly expanded.

Redshift (Rød forskyving)

The observation that galaxies are moving away from each other, serving as evidence for the Big Bang Theory.

Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation (Kosmisk bakgrunnsstråling)

A faint radiation heat present throughout space that serves as evidence for the Big Bang Theory.

Earth's Four Main Elements

Iron, oxygen, silicon, and magnesium, with oxygen and silicon being the most abundant in Earth's crust.

Gravity (Tyngdekraft)

The invisible force that pulls everything with mass toward each other, holding planets in orbit and gathering gas and dust to create stars and galaxies.

Theia

A Mars-sized planet that crashed into the young Earth about 4.6 billion years ago, launching debris into space that formed the Moon.

Solar Eclipse (Solformørking)

An event that occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, blocking the light of the Sun.

Lunar Eclipse (Måneformørking)

An event that occurs when Earth passes between the Sun and the Moon, casting Earth's shadow onto the Moon.

Baltica

An ancient, flat continent from around 550 million years ago located far south of the equator, which today forms large parts of Northern Europe and Scandinavia.

Caledonian Mountain Range (Den Kaledonske fjellkjeda)

A mountain range as high as the Himalayas created around 400 million years ago when Baltica collided with Laurentia.

Earth's Crust (Jordskorpa)

The outermost, thin, and hard shell of the Earth upon which life exists.

Mantle (Mantelen)

The viscous, thick layer underneath Earth's crust consisting of partially molten rock.

Earth's Core (Kjernen)

The innermost layer of Earth, consisting of a liquid outer core and a crystal-hard, glowing inner core composed of iron and nickel.

Alfred Wegener

A German scientist from the early 1900s who proposed the theory of continental drift and the supercontinent Pangea.

Divergent Plate Boundaries

Boundaries where tectonic plates move away from each other, creating cracks where magma rises to form new seafloor or volcanoes.

Convergent Plate Boundaries

Boundaries where tectonic plates collide, forcing one plate down to form ocean trenches and volcanoes, or folding up into large mountain ranges like the Himalayas.

Transform Plate Boundaries

Boundaries where tectonic plates slide past each other sideways, causing powerful earthquakes when stored energy is suddenly released.

Red Giant

The phase the Sun will enter in about 5 billion years when its fuel runs out, causing it to expand and engulf the inner planets, including Earth.

White Dwarf (Kvit dvergstjerne)

The small, glowing star remnant left behind after the Sun ejects its outer layers at the end of its life cycle.

Galaxy (Galakse)

A collection of billions of stars, gas, and dust held together by gravity; Earth's galaxy is called the Milky Way.

Pangea

The supercontinent where all of Earth's landmasses were joined together approximately 300 million years ago.

Laurasia

The northern supercontinent that broke away from Pangea and later divided into North America, Europe, and Asia.

Volcano (Vulkan)

An opening in Earth's crust through which molten rock (magma and lava) and gas emerge from the interior.

Tsunami

An enormous, dangerous ocean wave typically caused by an earthquake on the seafloor.

Earthquake (Jordskjelv)

Shaking of the ground that occurs when built-up tension between tectonic plates is suddenly released.

Seafloor Spreading (Havbotnspreiing)

The process where rising magma cools and forms new oceanic crust where two tectonic plates move apart.

Erosion (Erosjon)

The process by which external forces like water, wind, or glaciers wear down and transport away rock and soil.

Fusion (Fusjon)

The Sun's energy source in which hydrogen atomic nuclei fuse into heavier helium nuclei under immense pressure and heat, releasing vast amounts of light and heat.