Final Flashcards
(120 cards)
1
Q
When was the last ice age?
A
20,000 years ago; Pleistocene
2
Q
What is the fate of Florida as ice on Earth continues to melt?
A
Bye Bye Florida
3
Q
What are the major greenhouse gases?
A
CO2, CH4 (Methane), N2O (Nitrous Oxide),
4
Q
How are CO2 and temperature related?
A
More CO2 heats up the atmosphere
5
Q
What are some of the consequences of climate change?
A
Hotter temperatures, melting ice, Extreme weather events
6
Q
What is the current carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration in the atmosphere?
A
427 ppm
7
Q
How has the thickness of Arctic sea ice changed over the past 40 years?
A
It has declined
8
Q
How has the age of Arctic sea ice changed over the past 40 years?
A
Major Decline
9
Q
Which land mass has lost the greatest amount of land ice?
A
Greenland
10
Q
CO2 levels were much higher during the Mesozoic. Why are we so concerned about today’s levels?
A
It’s raising at a much faster rate
11
Q
How do we know about the Earth’s interior?
A
Seismic Waves
12
Q
Which is denser, oceanic crust or continental crust?
A
Oceanic Crust
13
Q
Who discovered the crust-mantel boundary?
A
Andrija Mohorovičić
14
Q
Who discovered the core-mantel boundary?
A
Beno Gutenberg
15
Q
Who discovered the inner core?
A
Inge Lehmann
16
Q
What is the difference between a anticline and a syncline?
A
Anticline: Rock points up like an “A:
Syncline: Rock points down like a “U”
17
Q
What are the earth interior layers?
A
Crust, mantle, outer core, inner core
18
Q
Which layer in the Earth does not transmit S waves?
A
Outer Core
19
Q
What element makes up most of the earth’s core?
A
Iron (Fe)
20
Q
What happens when two continental plates collide?
A
Mountain Building
21
Q
What happens when two oceanic plates collide?
A
Forms deep ocean trenches and island arcs
22
Q
What happens when an oceanic and continental plate collide?
A
Subduction zones, Volcanic arches, and earthquakes
23
Q
What types of deformation can occur due to compression?
A
Folding and faulting
24
Q
What is the relationship between plate boundaries and earthquake depth?
A
subduction zones have the deepest earthquakes, while mid-ocean ridges and transform faults typically produce shallow earthquakes.
25
What is Pangea?
The Supercontinent
26
What drives plate tectonics?
Earths interior heat and rotation
27
What are the four pieces of evidence that Alfred Wegener used for continental drift?
1. Puzzle piece method
2. Fossil Evidence
3. Climate
4. Geological Evidence
28
What was Harry Hess’ contribution to plate tectonics?
Sea floor spreading
29
What are magnetic anomalies?
Changes in Earths magnetic field
30
What would likely occur if the magnetic field reversed today?
Power grids and satellites would collapse
31
What two plates does the San Andreas Fault separate?
Pacific Plate and North American Plate
32
What are the plate tectonic boundaries?
1. Divergent
- Mid-Atlantic Ridge
2. Convergent
- Himalayas
3. Transform
- San Andreas Fault
33
Who created the first map of the seafloor?
Marie Tharp
34
Who proposed continental drift?
Alfred Wegener
35
What type of faults have the highest magnitude earthquakes?
Convergent boundaries
36
What types of faults are associated with compression, tension, and shear?
Compression: Reverse fault
Tension: Normal fault
Shear: Strike-slip fault
37
How large of an earthquake (with respect to magnitude) can occur on the San Andreas?
Magnitude 8.3
38
Where do deep-focus earthquakes occur?
Subduction zones
39
Which seismic waves are fastest?
P Waves
40
What is the difference between Richter magnitude and MMI magnitude?
Richter: Measures the energy released
MMI: The damages that can happen
41
What is liquefaction?
Soil becomes more liquid like
42
What is the motion of the San Andreas Fault?
transform (strike-slip) fault
43
Why is there an area of “creep” along the San Andreas near Parkfield?
There is serpentinite at the
base of the fault that alters to talc – decreasing friction allowing the fault to slip
44
What caused the 2004 tsunami that killed some 200,000 people?
a massive undersea megathrust earthquake
45
What is Dr Workman-Ford's favorite fossil
mosasaurus
46
What are the physical properties of minerals?
Color, Streak, Luster, hardness, Cleavage
47
Know three minerals and their uses
Quartz: Glassmaking
Halite: Table salt
Graphite: Pencil lead
48
What is the definition of a mineral?
A mineral is a naturally occurring, inorganic solid with a definite chemical composition and an ordered crystal structure.
49
What are native elements?
Native elements are minerals made of a single element, not combined with any other elements.
50
What are the Bowen’s minerals?
magma cools and crystallizes
51
What is the difference between magma and lava?
Magma is underground and lava is above ground
52
How do plate boundaries relate to types of volcanoes?
Convergent: Compost Volcanos
Divergent Boundaries: Shield Volcanos
53
How does crystal size relate to cooling rate?
Slow cooling means large crystals
Fast cooling means small crystals
54
What does porphyritic mean?
texture in igneous rocks where large crystals (phenocrysts) are embedded in a finer-grained or glassy groundmass (matrix).
55
What types of rock are associated with shield, composite (strato), and caldera-type volcanoes?
Shield: Basalt
Composite: Rhyolite
Caldera: Tuff
56
What is viscosity?
Viscosity is a measure of how thick or resistant to flow a liquid is.
57
What factors contribute to a volcano’s eruption intensity?
Magma viscosity, gas content, and temperature of magma
58
What type of volcano is Mt. Shasta? Mauna Loa? Long Valley? Yellowstone?
Composite, shield, caldera, caldera
59
What is the largest volcano on earth
Mauna Loa
60
What are the hazards associated with the different types of volcanoes?
Shield: Lava flow
Composite: Ash and Hot gas
Caldera: Destruction of everything for miles
61
What is an unconformity?
a gap in the geologic record where rock layers are missing due to erosion or a period without deposition.
62
What is the principle of uniformitarianism?
The present is the key to the past
63
What is catastrophism?
geologic principle that Earth’s features were mostly formed by sudden, short-lived, and violent events
64
What is the law of superposition?
Age dating due to the rock layers
65
What is the principle of cross-cutting relationships?
If a layer of rocks crosses into another it's younger
66
What is the difference between relative and absolute dating?
Relative is estimating which one is younger or older not it's exact age
Absolute is estimating the exact age
67
What is an isotope?
Same number of protons diffrent neutrons
68
How old is the earth? What is this age based on?
4.54 billion years old and it's based on meteorites
69
What was Bishop Ussher’s contribution to the age of the Earth? October 23, 4004 BC
He calculated the age of the earth based on the bible and he said it's 6000 years old
70
What was Antoine Henri Becquerel’s contribution to numerical dating?
He discovered radioactivity which was later used to determine Earth age
71
What are the types of chemical weathering?
Hydrolysis: Minerals react with water
Oxidization: Oxygen erodes it over time
Dissolution: Acid rain water erodes it
72
What are the types of mechanical (physical) weathering?
Frost wedging: Freeze-thaw of water
Thermal expansion: Heating and cooling
Exfoliation: Pressure release
Abrasion: Wind, water, ice, gravity
Biological activity: Roots, burrowing animals
Salt crystal growth: Evaporation of salty water
73
How does mechanical weathering affect chemical weathering?
Mechanical weathering breaks rocks into smaller pieces, which exposes more surface area for chemical weathering to occur
74
What are the three types of sediments?
Clastic, chemical, biological
75
How are sedimentary rocks classified?
Clastic: forms from fragments
Chemical: forms from dissolved Pokemon
Biological: accumulation of organic material
76
What is textural maturity?
The grain size, shape, and sorting of the sedimentary particles in rock have been altered by transportation and weathering.
77
What are the different sedimentary structures?
Bedding: Different grain sizes and colors
Cross Bending: Wind or watermarks
Grading Bending: Decreases top to bottom
Ripple Marks: Ripples from waves
Mud Cracks: Mud Drying
Trace Fossils: Proof of the organism, but not the organism
78
What is the difference between an unaltered fossil and an altered fossil?
Altered means the fossil was changed overtime
79
What is the age of invertebrates? Age of dinosaurs? Age of mammals?
Invertebrates: Precambian time
Dinosaurs: Mesozoic Era
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
mammals: Mesozoic Era
80
How long ago did the dinosaurs become extinct?
66 mya
81
When was the largest mass extinction on earth?
Permian-Triassic; 250 mya
82
What are the different types of fossilization?
Amber entombment, tar impregnation,
permineralization, replacement
83
What is a trace fossil?
Proof that a life form was there, but no parts of the fossil
84
How is water distributed on Earth?
97.5% Saltwater
2.5% Fresh water
85
What is porosity?
How much empty space is between the space the grains of rocks
86
What is permeability?
How much water sediment structures let pass through
87
What causes subsidence?
Subsidence is the sinking or settling of the ground surface
88
What is the difference between a confined and unconfined aquifer?
Unconfined Aquifer: An aquifer that has no overlying impermeable layer, so water can freely enter from the surface.
Confined Aquifer: An aquifer that is trapped between two impermeable layers (like clay or rock), restricting water movement into or out of the aquifer.
89
What is infiltration?
Infiltration is the process by which water on the ground surface enters the soil.
90
What is the difference between a meandering and a braided stream?
Meandering Stream: A stream that flows in a single, winding channel with broad curves called meanders
Braided Stream: A stream with multiple interweaving channels separated by bars or islands of sediment.
91
Where does erosion take place in a meandering stream?
erosion mainly occurs on the outer bends of the curves, known as the cut banks.
92
What is the drainage basin of a river?
entire area of land where rainfall, snowmelt, and other water flow into a common outlet, such as a river, lake, or ocean.
93
What dictates the velocity of a river?
Graded slop, channel roughness, discharge, channel size, and curves
94
Know how to calculate the discharge of a stream
Q= A*V
95
What are the types of load carried by a stream?
Dissolved load: Soluble minerals and ions
Suspended load: Fine particles (clay, silt)
Bed load: Coarse materials (sand, gravel, rocks)
96
What is foliation?
a texture in metamorphic rocks characterized by the alignment of mineral grains in thin layers or sheets.
97
What is necessary for metamorphism to occur?
Heat and pressure
98
What is the geothermal gradient?
30 degrees c per km
99
What are the types of metamorphism?
Shock, hydrothermal, contact, regional
100
How does the rock cycle work?
Igneous to sediment: Weather and erosion
Sediment to metamorphic: heat and pressure
101
Free Point
YAY!!!
102
What types of things can trigger a landslide?
Weather, Volcanic activity, and earthquakes
103
I just want the numbers to match
I get it bro
104
What is the main force acting on landslides?
Gravity
105
What prevents debris from moving?
Internal Friction
106
What did the Pacific Ocean say to the Atlantic?
Nothing it just waved
107
What is a tombolo?
A tombolo is a type of landform that forms when a sandbar or spit connects an island to the mainland or to another island
108
What is longshore drift?
Longshore drift is the movement of sediment (sand, gravel, etc.) along the shoreline due to the action of waves and currents
109
What are the different types of dunes?
Barchan Dunes
Transverse Dunes
Longitudinal (Linear) Dunes
Star Dunes
Parabolic Dunes
Blowout Dunes
110
What are the wind-formed and water-formed features in deserts?
Wind formed: Dunes
Water formed: Alluvial Fans
111
What is the largest desert on Earth?
The Antarctic
112
What is a polar desert?
A dessert the gets a lot of snow and no rain
113
What is the rain shadow?
The side of a mountain range that doesn't get a lot of rain
114
What percent of a desert is covered by sand?
20%
115
What is the California state dinosaur?
Augustynolophus
116
What is the California state gemstone?
Benitoite
117
What is the California state mineral? State rock?
Gold, serpentine
118
What is the California state fossil?
Smilodon
119
What did William Mulholland want to do with Yosemite Valley?
Dam the valley and provide a water flow for LA
120
Who designed the LA Aqueduct?
William Mulholland
