CHAPTER 6 - UNIT 4: EARTH SYSTEMS AND RESOURCES

RESOURCE

defined as any substance, capability (such as work performed by humans or animals), or other asset that is available in a supply that can be accessed and drawn on as needed.

NATURAL RESOURCES

resources that occur in nature; they exist apart from humans, without human effort or intervention prior to our exploitation of them; It refers to properties of the natural world such as gravity, magnetic power, and other forces of potential use to humans

SOLID EARTH

—the Earth’s solid, rocky outer shell

LITHOSPHERE

The upper shell of the solid Earth and is the part that interacts most with the other spheres

PEDOSPHERE

—more commonly known as soil

ATMOSPHERE

the envelope of gases that surrounds the Earth

HYDROSPHERE

the Earth’s oceans and freshwater bodies

EARTH

third planet from the Sun in our solar system, which contains a total of eight currently known and recognized planets

INNER CORE

the innermost zone and is composed mostly of nickel and iron and is solid due to the tremendous pressure from overlying matter.

OUTER CORE

it is composed mostly of iron, also mixed with nickel as well as some lighter elements, and is semi-solid due to lower pressure.

MANTLE

surrounded the outer core and is made mostly of solid rock

ASTHENOSPHERE

layer of slowly flowing rock near the top of the mantle

LITHOSPHERE

a thin, rigid layer of rock, is the Earth’s outer shell.

CRUST

solid surface of the Earth

PANGAEA

continents were joined together, forming a supercontinent known as _______________

PACIFIC PLATE

largest plate that primarily consists of ocean floor

TECTONIC PLATES

several large pieces of lithosphere that move slowly over the mantle of the Earth.

PLATE BOUNDARIES

The edges of the plates and the places where two plates abut each other are where events like sea floor spreading and most volcanoes and earthquakes occur.

COVERGENT BOUNDARY

Two plates are pushed toward and into each other.

DIVERGENT BOUNDARY

Two plates move away from each other.

TRANSFORM FAULT BOUNDARY

Two plates slide against each other in opposite directions—as when you rub your hands back and forth to warm them up.

subduction

converging ocean-ocean and converging ocean-continent boundaries often result in ________________

orogeny

converging continent-continent boundaries result in _________________

OROGENY

uplifting of plates that form large mountain chains as they crunch into each other

VOLCANOES

mountains formed by pressure from magma rising from the Earth’s interior

ACTIVE VOLCANOES

volcanoes that are currently erupting or have erupted within recorded history (that is, within the last 10,000 years)

DORMANT VOLCANOES

volcanoes that have not been known to erupt during this period.

EXTINCT VOLCANOES

volcanoes that will never erupt again

SUBDUCTION ZONES

occur at convergent boundaries between oceanic and continental plates, or sometimes between two oceanic plates.

RIFT VALLEY

occur at divergent boundaries, usually between two oceanic plates.

HOT SPOTS

do not form at plate boundaries. Instead, they are found in the middle of tectonic plates, in locations where columns of unusually hot magma melt through the mantle and weaken the Earth’s crust

SHIELD VOLCANOES

type of volcanoes that have broad bases and are tall with gentle slopes

SHIELD VOLCANOES

type of volcano that generally form over oceanic hot spots and usually have mild eruptions with slow lava flow

COMPOSITE VOLCANOES

type of volcanoes that have broad bases and are also tall but with steeper slopes

COMPOSITE VOLCANOES

type of volcanoes that are formed at subduction zones and are associated with violent eruptions that eject lava, water, and gases as superheated ash and stones

CINDER VOLCANOES

volcanoes that are small, short, and steeply sloped cones

CINDER VOLCANOES

type of volcano that form when molten lava erupts and cools quickly in the air, hardening into porous rocks (called cinders or scoria) that fracture as they hit the Earth’s surface.

CINDER VOLCANOES

type of volcano that generally form near other types of volcanoes

LAVA DOMES

type of volcano that are small and short with steep slopes and rounded tops

LAVA DOMES

type of volcano that are formed from lava that is too viscous to travel far but instead hardens into a dome shape.

LAVA DOMES

This type of volcano occurs near or even inside other types of volcanoes.

EARTHQUAKES

result of vibrations (often due to sudden plate movements, such as stress overcoming a locked fault) deep in the Earth that release stored energy.

FOCUS

the location at which the earthquake begins within the earth

EPICENTER

the initial surface location of an earthquake

SEISMOGRAPH

The size, or magnitude, of earthquakes is measured by using an instrument known as _______________

RICHTER SCALE

measures the amplitude of the highest S-wave of an earthquake.

S-WAVE

seismic body wave that shakes the ground up and down or side to side, perpendicular to the direction the wave is moving

TSUNAMIS

very large ocean waves, or chains of waves, caused by the movement of the Earth during an earthquake or volcanic eruption and can be extremely destructive.

3.8 billion

the oldest rocks on earth are _______________ years old

IGNEOUS ROCK

type of rock that results when rock is melted (by heat and pressure below the crust) into a liquid and then resolidifies when cooled

MAGMA

molten rock

IGNEOUS

basalt is an example of ____________ rock

SEDIMENTARY ROCK

type of rock that is formed as sediment (eroded rocks and the remains of plants and animals) builds up and is compressed.

SEDIMENTARY ROCK

type of rock that forms under water as sediments or dissolved minerals deposit on a stream bed or ocean floor

SEDIMENTARY

limestone is an example of ____________ rock

METAMORPHIC ROCK

type of rock that is formed as a great deal of pressure and heat produces physical and/or chemical changes in existing rock.

METAMORPHIC

slate is an example of _______________ rock

SOIL

it plays a crucial role in the lives of the plants, animals, and other organisms and acts as an essential link between the abiotic (nonliving) components of the world and its biotic (living) components.

CLAY

The class with the smallest particles which has particles less than 0.002 mm in diameter.

SAND

coarsest soil, with particles 0.05–2.0 mm in diameter.

SILT

soil with particles 0.002-0.05 mm in diameter

PERMEABILITY

how easily fluids such as water and air move

POROSITY

measurement of void or the number of holes of a material

SOIL TEXTURE TRIANGLE

the diagram that allows for the identification and comparison of soil types based on their percentages of clay, silt, and sand

LOAM

soil texture that has a proportion of the three size classes considered optimal for plant growth: 7–27% clay, 28–50% silt, and less than 52% sand.

WATER HOLDING CAPACITY

the total amount of water a given soil can hold

EROSION

distinct process by which broken-down material is removed from one place and transported to another, across the Earth’s surface, usually by wind or water.

PHYSICAL WEATHERING

• also known as mechanical weathering

• process that breaks rock down into smaller pieces without changing the chemistry of the rock

• forces responsible for this weathering are wind and water

CHEMICAL WEATHERING

Occurs as a result of chemical reactions of rock with water, air, or dissolved minerals.

BIOLOGICAL WEATHERING

Weathering that takes place as the result of the activities of living organisms, which may act through physical or chemical means.

HORIZONS

layers of soil

O HORIZON

This layer is made up of organic matter at various stages of decomposition. It includes animal waste, leaves and other plant tissues (such as dead roots), and the decomposing bodies of organisms.

HUMUS

dark, crumby material that left after organic matter has decomposed

A HORIZON

This is the topsoil—the topmost mineral horizon and the most intensively weathered soil layer.

LEACHING

In soils lacking an E horizon, this may also be called the zone of ___________________

E HORIZON

This is the eluviated horizon.

B HORIZON

Sometimes called the subsoil, this is where organic matter, clay, and minerals washed out of the upper horizons accumulate.

B HORIZON

it is called the zone of accumulation or the zone of illuviation.

C HORIZON

This layer is the parent material—unconsolidated material, loose enough to be dug up with a shovel.

R HORIZON

Beneath the soil lies a layer of consolidated (cemented), unweathered rock

ELUVIATION

the movement of water-borne minerals, humus, and other materials from higher soil layers to lower soil layers.

ILLUVIATION

the deposition of the materials in a lower soil horizon.

LEACHING

similar to eluviation but refers specifically to dissolved (not suspended) organic and chemical compounds, and implies loss of these substances from the soil profile by draining into the groundwater.

TRANSLOCATION

movement from one soil horizon to another

CLIMATE

differences in temperature and precipitation across the globe, and both heat and water facilitate chemical and biochemical reactions.

ORGANISMS

perform biochemical functions such as decomposition of organic matter and transformation of minerals into different forms.

TOPOGRAPHICAL RELIEF

it is affected where water moves on the landscape and also the depth of the water table in a given location.

PARENT MATERIAL

This is the starting point for soil development

TROPOSPHERE

The layer of gases that lies closest to the Earth (0-20 km)

TROPOPAUSE

layer that acts as a buffer between the troposphere and the next layer up, the stratosphere.

STRATOSPHERE

sits on top of the tropopause and extends about 20–50 km above the Earth’s surface

OZONE LAYER

a thin band of ozone (O3) that exists in the lower half of stratosphere

MESOSPHERE

extends to about 80 km (50 miles) above the Earth’s surface and is the area where meteors usually burn up

THERMOSPHERE

extends from 80 to around 500 km above the Earth and it’s in this layer that the spectacular and colorful auroras (northern lights and southern lights) take place.

EXOSPHERE

The furthest layer extending to 10,000 km (6,200 miles) or more above the Earth

IONOSPHERE

not a distinct layer but dispersed throughout the upper mesosphere, the thermosphere, and the lower exosphere.

IONOSPHERE

comprises regions of ionized gases that absorb most of the energetic charged particles from the sun—the protons and electrons of the solar wind.

WEATHER

The day to-day properties such as wind speed and direction, temperature, amount of sunlight, pressure, and humidity

CLIMATE

The patterns that are constant over many years (30 years or more)

METEOROLOGIST

scientists who study weather and climate.