Plate tectonics

Question 1

Lithosphere

Answer 1

The solid, outer layer pf the earth that consists of the crust and the rigid upper part of the mantle

Question 2

Asthensphere

Answer 2

the soft layer of the mantle on which the tectonic plates move

Question 3

mesosphere

Answer 3

The strong, lower part of the mantle between the asthenosphere and the outer core.

Question 4

Inner core

Answer 4

the innermost geologic layer of planet Earth. It is primarily a solid ball with a radius of about 1,220 km

Question 5

Outer core

Answer 5

a fluid layer about 2,400 km thick and composed of mostly iron and nickel that lies above Earth’s solid inner core and below its mantle

Question 6

Seismic waves

Answer 6

a wave of energy that travles through the earth and away from an earthquake in all directions

Question 7

Oceanic crust

Answer 7

the uppermost layer of the oceanic portion of the tectonic plates. It is composed of the upper oceanic crust, with pillow lavas and a dike complex, and the lower oceanic crust, composed of troctolite, gabbro and ultramafic cumulates

Question 8

Continental crust

Answer 8

the relatively thick part of the earth’s crust that forms the large landmasses. It is generally older and more complex than the oceanic crust

Question 9

Density

Answer 9

the ratio of the mass of a substance to the volume of the substance

Question 10

Alfred wegener

Answer 10

a German climatologist, geologist, geophysicist, meteorologist, and polar researcher.

Question 11

Continental drift

Answer 11

the hypothesis that states that the continents once formed a single land mass between the shoreline and the continental slope.

Question 12

convergent boundary

Answer 12

the boundary formed by the collision of movement of a liquid or gas.

Question 13

Divergent boundary

Answer 13

the boundary between tow tectonic plates that are moving away from each other

Question 14

Transform boundary

Answer 14

the boundary between tectonic plates that are sliding past each other horizontally.

Question 15

Sea floor spreading

Answer 15

the process by which new oceanic lithosphere forms as magma rises toward the surface and solidifies.

Question 16

Pangaea

Answer 16

a supercontinent that existed during the late Paleozoic and early Mesozoic eras.

Question 17

Laurasia

Answer 17

the more northern of two large landmasses that formed part of the Pangaea supercontinent from around 335 to 175 million years ago, the other being Gondwana

Question 18

gondwana

Answer 18

a supercontinent that formed during the late Neoproterozoic and began to break up during the Jurassic, with the final stages of breakup, including the opening of the Drake Passage separating South America and Antarctica occurring during the Paleogene

Question 19

mesosaurus

Answer 19

an extinct small aquatic reptile of the early Permian period, with an elongated body, flattened tail, and a long, narrow snout with numerous pointed teeth.

Question 20

. Glossopteris

Answer 20

the largest and best-known genus of the extinct Permian order of seed ferns known as Glossopteridales.