Earth’s Layers
What layer is found between Earth’s crust and core?
Mantle
What did Wegener believe about the continents?
They were once connected
What process involves hot material rising and cooler material sinking?
Convection
How many hearts does an octopus have?
Three
What are the three major categories of rocks?
Sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic
What two parts make up the lithosphere?
Crust and uppermost mantle
What feature first made the continents appear as though they once fit together?
Their matching coastlines
What layer is located directly below the lithosphere?
Asthenosphere
Approximately how many miles away is the Sun?
93 million miles
What process occurs when melted rock cools and forms igneous rock?
Crystallization
What vocabulary word means “melted or liquefied”?
Molten
Name the two matching geologic features Wegener found.
Mountains and glacial deposits
Why do tectonic plates float on the asthenosphere?
They are less dense
Which planet is closest in size to Earth?
Venus
What two conditions change existing rock into metamorphic rock?
Heat and pressure
Why does continental crust sit higher than oceanic crust?
It is less dense
Which freshwater reptile had fossils in South America and Africa?
Mesosaurus
What property allows the solid asthenosphere to flow like putty?
Plasticity
How many bones does a shark have?
Zero
What two energy sources drive the processes of the rock cycle?
The Sun and Earth’s interior
What island is given as an example of oceanic plate material located above the ocean?
Iceland
Besides animals crossing oceans, what other explanation for matching fossils did Wegener reject?
Independent evolution
Which two tectonic plates are pulling Iceland apart?
North American and Eurasian plates
What is the only bird that can fly backward?
Hummingbird
What three processes can change igneous rock into sedimentary rock?
Erosion, deposition, and cementation