Exam 1 Geology

Corona

the outermost layer of the sun

Solar Wind

speeds up as it moves away from the sun

Coronal Mass Ejection (CME)

• very large, powerful, and fast ejections of material

• move out from the sun in a give direction

(associated with sun spots)

Magnetosphere

a region around the planet shielded by a system of magnetic field's caused by Earth

Carrington Event

A powerful CME took 19 hours to reach Earth

• auroras were seen worldwide

• telegraph systems failed and caught fire, operators hit by electric shocks

Electromagnetic Pulse

destroys electronics- an system relying on electronics would fail (can be neutralized by Faraday Cage)

Faraday Cage

a cage used to protect people and equipment against electric currents

Sunspot

solar activities (varies in 11 year cycles)

Sunspot Cycle

more solar activity -> more dark spots on the sun

Solar Maximum/Solar Max

times of highest solar activity

Comet

• small solar body

• made of ice and rock

Comet Tail

a long tail made of gas + dust when warmed by the sun

Asteroid

made of rock or metal

(small solar system body)

Space Dust

smaller than asteroid

Bolide

asteroid or comet that enters Earth atmosphere and eplodes/impacts

Meteor

bright steak seen in the sky when piece of extraterrastrial material (asteroid, comet, space dust) enters atmosphere ("shooting star")

Meterorite

meteoroid that make it to Earth surface

Meteoroid

object causing meteor streak

Eccentric Orbit

(off center) spend most of their time far from the sun

Coma of a Comet

(glowing cloud) thawing of ice in inner solar system of dust + gas

Asteroid Belt

doughnut shaped ring of small bodies 2-3 AU from the sun

(between Mars and Jupiter)

Resonance Gap

areas in the asteroid belt that correspond to 2:1 and 3:1 resonance with Jupiter are depleted in asteroids

Meteor Shower

Earth orbits intersects a comet's orbital path

Short Period Comet

period less than 200 years (come from Kuiper Belt)

Kuiper Belt

a ring of "small" icy bodies outside the orbit of Neptune

Near Earth Asteroid

closest distance to sun < 1.3 AU (astronomical unit)

Potentially Hazardous Asteroid

• orbit comes within 1/20 AU of Earth orbit

• 100 m diameter or bigger

Tectonic Plate Boundary

rigid layer above mantle to break into plates that move relative to each other

Divergent Plate Boundary

plates moving apart (crust being created)

Convergent Plate Boundary

plates coming together (one plates overrides the other)

Transform Plate Boundary

plates moving past each other ("connect" other boundary types)

Subduction

other plate being forced back down into the mantle

Volcano

Vulcano, named after god of fire Vulcan

• opening in Earth crust, where lava, volcanic ash, and gas escape

Lava

molten rock at Earth's surface

Magma

molten rock below the surface

Viscosity

resistance to flow (depends on composition of lava)

Volcanic Ash

ash produced during volcanic eruption ejected upwards into the atmosphere

Volcanic Winter

large eruptions, putting alot of ash into the stratosphere that they block sunlight, lowering global temperature

Pyroclastic Flow

ash mixing with other material and moves in a different manner

Lahar

volcanic mudflow

(ash + debris + water = lahar)

Pyroclastic Debris

("fire pieces") fragmented material thrown from a volcano that is solid by the time it lands

Earthquake

motion produced when stress within the Earth's build up over a period of time

Fault

fracture in earth's crust on which slip/sliding occurs

Fault Plane

surface created between two rocks

Stick-Slip Behavior

force trying to move 2 sides overcome frictional resistance

Earthquake Focus

(hypocenter) center of energy release during an earthquake (underground)

Earthquake Epicenter

point on earth's surface directly above focus

Seismic Wave

push/pull created by sudden movement on a fault is felt by the rock, sending shock out from the focus

P-Wave

Primary waves (fastest)

S-Wave

shear waves

Surface-Wave

travel only along ground surface

(not through body of earth)

Seismograph

record initiating earthquake

Aftershock

smaller earthquakes following initial quake

Omori's Law

rate of aftershocks decreases hyperbolically with time

Mercalli Intensity Rate

intensity of an earthquake by the amount of damage it causes

(useful when reconstructing historical earthquakes)

Ricther Scale

based on largest amount of ground motion (adjusted for distance from epicenter)

Rayleigh Waves

pass by like ocean waves

Love Waves

pass by like a snake

Tsunami

giant wave (EQ damage)

Tsunami mean in Japanese

harbor wave

Submarine Fault

vertical displacement of sea floor generate wave in overlying water

Submarine Landslides

displace water from above

Wavelength

depth/slope of the ocean bottom

• touch bottom for off shore

• become huge by the time they break

Tsunami Run-Up

maximum vertical height onshore above sea level

Mineral

solid, inorganic, chemical composition, crystal structure, naturally formed

Rock

naturally occuring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter

(made of glass, minerals, organic amber)

Organic Component

matter derived by buried and preserved organisms like plants and animals

• organic amber (coal, amber)

Inorganic Component

chemicals with no carbon-hydrogen

Minerology

study of minerals

Limestone

(rock) made out of calcite

Calcite

mineral

Monomineralic

rocks made of one mineral

Polymineralic

rocks made of several minerals

Igenous Rock

formed when molten rocks cools and solidifies

Intrusive or Plutonic Rock

igneous rock formed inside the earth

Extrusive or Volcanic Rock

igenous rock formed above the earth

Metamorphic Rock

pre-existing rocks change to new ones because of increased temperature/pressure

Contact Metamorphism

heat from direct contact with magma

Regional Metamorphism

pressure from the forces causing the mountain to grow

Dynamic Metamorphism

subduction zone, result of pressure from plate collision, heat from friction between plates

Recrystallization

high temperature changes the size and shape of mineral grains/crystals

Metasomatism

reaction with hot solutions changes the rock

Sedimentary Rock

formed from fragments of previously existing rock at earth's surface or material produced at the earth surface

Clastic Sedimentary Rock

rock fragments cemented together