Key Terms
The theory that Earth’s crust is divided into moving plates.
What is plate tectonics?
When two plates collide, this landform often develops.
What is a mountain?
Carved by the Colorado River over millions of years.
What is the Grand Canyon?
Breaking down of rocks into sand and soil.
What is weathering (slow)?
A famous U.S. volcano that erupted in 1980.
What is Mount St. Helens?
The idea that continents were once joined as Pangaea.
What is continental drift?
When plates pull apart, this is created.
What is a rift valley or volcano?
A chain of volcanic islands formed by eruptions.
What are the Hawaiian Islands?
The sudden shaking of the ground.
What is an earthquake (sudden)?
The mountain range formed by India crashing into Asia.
What are the Himalayas?
The crack in Earth’s crust where movement occurs.
What is a fault?
When plates slide past each other, this event happens.
What is an earthquake?
A valley shaped by glaciers.
What is a U-shaped valley?
A mountain range slowly rising over millions of years.
What is mountain building (slow)?
The zone around the Pacific with most earthquakes and volcanoes.
What is the Ring of Fire?
The breaking down of rocks into smaller pieces.
What is weathering?
This type of boundary formed the Himalayas.
What is a convergent boundary?
Underground limestone dissolves to create these.
What are caves (stalactites/stalagmites)?
A giant wave caused by an underwater earthquake.
What is a tsunami (sudden)?
The major fault line in California.
What is the San Andreas Fault?
The movement of weathered material by water, wind, or ice.
What is erosion?
This boundary runs through California and causes frequent earthquakes.
What is the San Andreas Fault (transform boundary)?
Formed by repeated river flooding and sediment deposits.
What is a floodplain?
The process that carved the Grand Canyon.
What is erosion (slow)?
The African valley formed by plates pulling apart.
What is the Great Rift Valley?