Layers of the Earth
What is the outermost layer of the Earth where we live?
The Crust
What is the name of the large pieces of Earth’s crust that move?
Tectonic Plates
At which type of boundary do plates move apart?
Divergent
What is the shaking of the ground caused by movement along a fault called?
An earthquake
What is melted rock below Earth’s surface called?
Magma
Which layer of Earth is the thickest?
The Mantle
The theory that explains how plates move is called what?
The Theory of Plate Tectonics
At which type of boundary do plates collide?
Convergent
What is a crack in Earth’s crust called?
A fault
What is melted rock called after it reaches Earth’s surface?
Lava
The inner core is mostly made of what two metals?
Iron & Nickel
What scientist first proposed continental drift?
Alfred Wegener
At which type of boundary do plates slide past each other?
Transform
What scale measures the strength (magnitude) of an earthquake?
The Richter scale
What process forms new ocean floor at mid-ocean ridges?
Seafloor Spreading
Which layer of Earth is liquid: the inner core or the outer core?
Outer Core
What was the name of the supercontinent that existed millions of years ago?
Pangea
What usually forms when two continental plates collide?
Mountain Ranges
What is the point underground where an earthquake begins?
The Focus
What underwater mountain chain is formed at divergent boundaries?
Mid-ocean ridge
Why is the outer core liquid while the inner core is solid, even though the inner core is hotter?
Because the pressure is so great in the inner core that it keeps the iron and nickel solid, even at very high temperatures.
What force inside Earth helps move tectonic plates?
Convection Currents
What forms when an oceanic plate goes under a continental plate?
What is the point on Earth’s surface directly above the focus?
The epicenter
What landform forms when magma pushes through Earth’s crust repeatedly?
A Volcano