EARTHQUAKES AND VOLCANOES Flashcards
What is the ring of fire?
The ring of fire refers to a bunch of tectonically active volcanoes in the pacific ocean.
What is a strike-slip fault?
A strike-slip fault forms when opposing forces cause rock to break and move horizontally.
What is a normal fault?
A normal fault forms when rocks are pulled apart because of tension.
What is a reverse fault?
A reverse fault forms when when rocks are are pushed together because of compression,
What is a P wave?
A P wave is a wave of energy that travels through the Earth, away from an earthquake in all directions.
What is an S wave?
An S wave is a seismic wave that causes particles of rock to move in a side-to-side direction.
What is an epicenter?
An epicenter is the point on Earth’s surface directly above an earthquake’s starting point or focus.
What is a focus?
A focus is the point along which the first motion of an earthquake occurs.
What is the Richter magnitude scale?
The Richter magnitude scale measures the strength of earthquakes through seismograms at seismograph stations.
What is an explosive volcano?
An explosive volcano releases lava, ash, and/or gases with lots of pressure and force.
What is a nonexplosive volcano?
A nonexplosive volcano slowly oozes lava, instead of forcefully spitting it into the sky.
What is Krakatoa?
Krakatoa is a volcanic crater on an Indonesian island, responsible for 36,000 deaths in August of 1883.
What is the Yellowstone supervolcano?
The Yellowstone supervolcano is a volcanic crater in Wyoming, which hasn’t erupted in 70,000 years. If it ever did, disaster would befall most of the US, littering the sky with ash, starving crops of light.
What is the San Andreas fault?
The San Andreas fault is an example of a transform boundary, located in California.
What is a mid-ocean ridge?
A mid-ocean ridge is an example of a divergent boundary. Sea floor spreading happens here.
