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Honors Earth Science > First Semester Vocab - Final > Flashcards

First Semester Vocab - Final Flashcards

(62 cards)

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1
Q

abyssal plain

A

incredibly flat features a part of deep ocean basins

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2
Q

asthenosphere

A

beneath the lithosphere; known as the weak sphere

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3
Q

continental margin

A

portion of the seafloor adjacent to major landmasses. it may include the continental shelf, continental slope, and continental rise

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4
Q

continental shelf

A

gently sloping platform of material that extends seaward from the shore. it is considered a flooded extension of the continents

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5
Q

continental slope

A

the steep gradient that leads to the deep ocean floor and marks the seaward edge of the continental shelf

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6
Q

deep ocean basin

A

between the continental margins and oceanic ridges

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7
Q

deep ocean trench

A

an elongated depression in the seafloor produced by bending the oceanic crust during subduction

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8
Q

lithosphere

A

(sphere of rock) consists of the entire crust and uppermost mantle and forms Earth’s relatively cool, rigid, outer shell

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9
Q

nebular hypothesis

A

proposes that the bodies of our solar system evolved from an enormous rotating cloud called the solar nebula

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10
Q

oceanic (mid ocean) ridge

A

a continuous elevated zone on the floor of all major ocean basins and varying in width from 500 to 5000 km (300-3000 miles). the rifts at the crests of the ridges represent divergent plate boundaries

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11
Q

seamount

A

an isolated volcanic pea that rises at least 1000 meters (3000 feet) above the deep ocean floor

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12
Q

axial precession

A

a slow motion of earth’s axis that traces out a cone over a period of 26,000 years

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13
Q

ecliptic

A

the yearly path of the sun plotted against the background of stars

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14
Q

equatorial system

A

a method of locating stellar objects much like the coordinate system used on earth’s surface

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15
Q

mean solar day

A

the average time between two passages of the sun across the local celestial meridian

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16
Q

perturbation

A

gravitational disturbance of orbit of one celestial body by another

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17
Q

plane of the ecliptic

A

the imaginary plane that connects Earth’s orbit with the celestial sphere

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18
Q

sidereal day

A

the period of earth’s rotation with respect to the stars

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19
Q

sidereal month

A

a time period based on the revolution of the moon around the earth with respect to the stars

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20
Q

synodic month

A

the period of revolution of the moon with respect to the sun, or its cycle of phases

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21
Q

com

A

the fuzzy, gaseous component of a comet’s head

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22
Q

cryovolcanism

A

the eruption of magmas derived from the partial melting of ice rather than silicate rocks

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23
Q

lunar regolith

A

a thin, gray layer on the surface of the moon, consisting of loosely compacted, fragmented material believed to have been formed by repeating meteoritic impacts

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24
Q

maria

A

smooth areas of the moon formerly thought to be seas

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25
bright line (emission) spectrum
the bright lines produced by an incandescent gas under low pressure
26
chromatic aberration
the property of a lens whereby light of different colors is focused at different places
27
continuous spectrum
an uninterrupted band of light emitted by an incandescent solid, liquid, or gas under pressure
28
dark line (absorption) spectrum
a continuous spectrum with dark lines superimposed
29
solar flare
a sudden and tremendous eruption in the solar chromosphere
30
solar wind
subatomic particles ejected at high speed from the solar corona
31
spicule
a narrow jet of riding material in the solar chromosphere
32
active continental margin
usually narrow and consisting of highly deformed sediments. they occur where oceanic lithosphere is being subjected beneath the margin of a continent
33
biogeneous sediment
seafloor sediment consisting of material of marine organic origin
34
continental volcanic arc
mountains formed in part by igneous activity associated with the subduction of oceanic lithosphere beneath a continent
35
deep sea fan
a cone shaped deposit at the base of the continental slope. the sediment is transported to the fan by turbidity currents that follow submarine canyons
36
gas hydrate
usually compact chemical structures made of water and natural gas
37
graded bedding
a sediment layer that is characterized by a decrease in sediment size from bottom to top
38
hydrogenous sediment
seafloor sediments consisting of minerals that crystallize from seawater. an important example is manganese nodules
39
passive continental margin
margins that consist of a continental shelf, slope, and continental rise. they are not associated with plate boundaries and therefore experience little volcanism and few earthquakes
40
rift valley
a region of earth's crust along which divergence takes place
41
submarine canyon
a seaward extension of a valley that was cut on the continental shelf during a time when sea level was lower, or a canyon carved into the outer continental shelf, slope, and rise by turbidity currents
42
tablemount
submerged, flat topped seamounts
43
terrigenous sediment
seafloor sediments derived from terrestrial weathering and erosion
44
turbidite
turbidity current deposit characterized by graded bedding
45
turbidity
types of deposits
46
turbidity current
a downslope movement of dense, sediment laden water created when sand and mud on the continental shelf and slope are dislodged and thrown into suspension
47
abrasion
a grinding and scraping of rock surface by the friction and impact of rock particles carried by water, wind, or ice
48
barrier island
a long, elongate ridge of sand that parallels the coast
49
baymouth bar
a sandbar that completely crosses the bay, sealing it off from the open ocean
50
beach drift
the transport of sediment in a zig zag pattern along a beach caused by the uprush of water from obliquely breaking waves
51
beach nourishment
the process by which large quantities of sand are added to the beach system to offset losses caused by wave erosion
52
berm
the dry, gently sloping zone on the back shore of a beach at the foot of the coastal cliffs or dunes
53
diurnal tidal pattern
tidal pattern exhibiting one high tide and one low tide during the tidal day; a daily tide
54
groin
a short wall built at a right angle to the shore to trap moving sand
55
mixed tidal pattern
a tidal pattern exhibiting two high tides and two low tides per tidal day with a large inequality in high water heights, low water heights, or both. coastal locations that experience such a tidal pattern may also show alternating periods of diurnal and semidiurnal tidal patterns
56
neap tide
lowest tidal range, occurring near the times of the first - and third quarter phases of the moon
57
rip current
a strong narrow surface or near surface current of short duration and high speed flowing seaward through the breaker zone at nearly right angles to the shore
58
tidal current
the alternating horizontal movement of water associated with the rise and fall of the tide
59
tidal delta
a delta like feature created when a rapidly moving tidal current emerges from a narrow inlet and slows, depositing its load of sediment
60
tombolo
a ridge of sand that connects an island to the mainland or to another island
61
wave cut cliff
a seaward facing cliff along a steep shoreline formed by wave erosion at its bass and mass wasting
62
wave cut platform
a bench or shelf in the bedrock at sea level, cut by wave erosion

Honors Earth Science (3 decks)

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