Rocks
A rock formed from the accumulation of pre-existing rocks or organic material on the Earth's surface
Sedimentary Rocks
The Earth's lithosphere is divided into a number of large, platelike sections that move as distinct masses.
Plate Tectonics
A geological process that involves the removal and transportation of soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location to another on Earth's crust.
Erosion
The continuous change of rocks from one form to another.
The Rock Cycle
The first seismic waves to arrive during an earthquake
P-Wave or Primary Wave
A rock formed when magma or lava cools and solidifies.
Igneous Rocks
Plates which are found under land features
Continental Plates
A natural processes that involve the movement and dropping off of earth materials, such as soil and rocks, in different locations
Deposition
A process that squeezes, or presses, sediments into sedimentary rocks
Compaction
Large masses of ice that move slowly over land or down a valley
Glacier
A molten or partially molten rock that flows from a volcano or fissure in a planet or moon onto its surface.
Lava
Plates which are found under the largest bodies of water
Oceanic Plates
The process by which rocks, soils, and minerals break down at or near the Earth's surface and occurs when these materials are exposed to water, sunlight, atmospheric gases, and biological organisms.
Weathering
A type of physical weathering that occurs when material being transported wears away at a surface over time.
Abrasion
A chronological tool that Earth scientists use to organize the history of the planet
Geologic Time Scale
Molten rock found below the earth's surface.
Magma
What is the name of the fault system which runs through California?
San Andreas Fault
A process that breaks down rocks, soils, and minerals through chemical reactions.
Chemical Erosion
A solid material that is moved and deposited in a new location.
Sediment
A scientific process used in archaeology and geology to determine the age of an object or site on a specific calendar.
Absolute Dating
A type of rock formed when other rocks are changed by heat and pressure underground.
Metamorphic Rocks
The point on the earth's surface that corresponds to the location in the earth where an earthquake begins
Epicenter
The natural process of removing soil or rock and transporting it to a new location.
Mechanical Erosion
A naturally occurring inorganic element or compound having an orderly internal structure and characteristic chemical composition, crystal form, and physical properties.
Mineral
The interconnected and interacting components of planet Earth, including its atmosphere, hydrosphere (water), biosphere (life), geosphere (land), and sometimes the cryosphere (ice)
Earth System