Exam 1

Question 1

What are the three most common types of meteorites?

Answer 1

Carbonanceous chondrite
Iron-Nickel
Stony-iron

Question 2

Where would you find a composition similar to a stony iron meteorite?

Answer 2

mantle-core boundary

Question 3

What is the structure of Earth?

Answer 3

Crust (continental, oceanic)
Mantle (upper, lower)
Core (outer, inner)

Question 4

Define Lithosphere

Answer 4

crust and the upper mantle, rigid and brittle (rocks are cold and brittle)

Question 5

Is the Asthenosphere solid or liquid

Answer 5

fluid and liquid magma, deforms plastically (rocks are very hot and under high pressures where they behave plastically and can bend)

Question 6

Is the Mesosphere solid or liquid

Answer 6

Mostly solid with water trapped inside the rock

Question 7

Is the Outer core solid or liquid

Answer 7

liquid

Question 8

Is the Inner core solid or liquid

Answer 8

solid

Question 9

What are the two basic energy sources?

Answer 9

External heat engine- solar energy from the sun is the driving force powering the weather and climate conditions. Solar energy affects the atmosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere.

Earths internal heat engine: powered by heat energy trapped during planetesmial bombardment and heat generated.

Question 10

Formation of the early atmosphere

Answer 10

• Initial atmosphere when Earth formed was quickly dissipated
• Solar winders from a young sun that was very active
• H and He are too light to be held in Earths atmosphere

1) resulted from impact of volatile-rich matter striking the Earth from space after it was formed (comets)
2) volatiles tied up in early planetesimls which formed the early Earth

Question 11

Formation of early oceans

Answer 11

Earth was still very hot when the early atmosphere formed. When temps dropped, the water vapor in the atmosphere began to cool, condensed and fell as liquid rain. Rain was trapped in the low lying basaltic crust and formed the first oceans.

Question 12

What are the three main rock types

Answer 12

• Igneous (forms when magma cools down)
• Sedimentary (most of the rocks outside)
• Metamorphic (deep inside lithosphere)

Question 13

What are igneous rocks

Answer 13

formed by the solidification of molten rock

Ex: eruption from a volcano

Question 14

What are sedimentary rocks

Answer 14

formed when fragments of rocks are cemented together

Question 15

What are metamorphic rocks

Answer 15

formed by heat, pressure and fluids without molting.

Question 16

How do we know whats inside the Earth?

Answer 16

Seismic studies from earthquakes and nuclear bomb testing

Question 17

What is the D layer?

Answer 17

partially melted boundary between the lower mantle and the outer core

Question 18

Development of the plate tectonic theory

Answer 18

the concept that large scale movmeent of ontinents has been around since the 16th century.

Question 19

Who created the continental drift hypothesis

Answer 19

Alfred Wegener (1915) 
Continental drift hypothesis (super continent he called Pangaea separated 

Reasoning:

1. the continents seem to fit together
2. patters of present day animal life
3. Fossils- certain species found to span different continents
4. Related rocks
5. ancient climates

Why was this theory not elevated until the 60s?

• he lacked a mechanism. he had no way to move the continents.
• he incorrectly believed that only the continents were moving, which is wrong
• continents are not independent plates. plates are often made of both continental and oceanic lithosphere.