Earth's Systems Flashcards
(15 cards)
What are the four major Earth systems?
Geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, biosphere.
What causes the movement of tectonic plates?
Convection currents in the mantle.
What is the outermost layer of Earth?
The crust.
What is the composition of the Earth’s core?
Mostly iron and nickel (outer core=liquid, inner core=solid).
What type of boundary forms mountains?
Convergent boundary (continental-continental collision).
What type of boundary causes mid-ocean ridges?
Divergent boundary.
What is a transform boundary?
Plates slide past each other, often causing earthquakes.
What is the rock cycle?
The continuous transformation of rock types: igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic.
How are sedimentary rocks formed?
Through compaction and cementation of rocks.
What is weathering?
The breaking down of rocks (mechanical or chemical).
What is erosion?
The movement of sediments by water, wind, or ice.
What is deposition?
The laying down of sediments in a new location.
What layer of the atmosphere contains weather?
The troposphere.
What causes wind?
Unequal heating of Earth’s surface and the Coriolis effect.
What is a jet stream?
A fast-flowing air current in the upper atmosphere that influences weather.
