Physical Geology, Exam 4

Front 1

1. The oceanic crust is __________compared to the continental crust.

Back 1

Thinner

Front 2

2. What type of tectonic phenomena leads to the creation of oceanic volcanic islands such as the Galapagos or the Hawaiian Islands

Back 2

Island Assembly Line

Front 3

3. Which type of plate boundary results from two or more plates coming together?

Back 3

Convergent Plate Boundary

Front 4

4. A _______ is a fracture in the rock in which no appreciable movement has occurred.

Back 4

Joint

Front 5

5. Which type of plate boundary results from two or more plates moving apart?

Back 5

Divergent Plate Boundary

Front 6

6. If Earth's history was represented by one 24-hour day, how long has biological life proliferated on the planet.

Back 6

Between hour 20 and 21

Front 7

7. Along continental rifts and hot spots, vast amounts of basaltic lava can flow from fissures, forming __________.

Back 7

Volcanoes

Front 8

8. Is the Earth core liquid or solid?

Back 8

both: outer liquid zone and inner solid zone

Front 9

9. What is the source of heat that drives mantle convection?

Back 9

The decay of radioactive isotopes

Front 10

10. _________ are common features that develop in solid rock at the surface due to the release of pressure that results from erosion of overlying material.

Back 10

ridge crested mountains

Front 11

11. How did scientists discover that the Earth magnetic field changes direction?

Back 11

mid-ocean ridges for plate tectonics

Front 12

12. A strike-slip fault can also be called a __________ fault

Back 12

Transform

Front 13

13. The continents and ocean basins are located in the __________.

Back 13

Lithosphere

Front 14

14. Some of the most highly elevated and tectonically active mountain ranges in the world are the result of __________ zones.

Back 14

Subduction

Front 15

15. According to high-resolution GPS satellites, lithospheric plates are moving at an average rate of __________ per year.

Back 15

5-10cm

Front 16

16. What is the most common mineral found in rocks on Earth?

Back 16

Feldspar

Front 17

17. The Hawaiian Islands represent a hot-spot track that in moving in what direction?

Back 17

Northeast

Front 18

18. What term best describes the rocky outer layer of the Earth?

Back 18

Brittle

Front 19

19. Explosive or voluminous eruptions may cause a volcano to collapse into the floor of the empty magma chamber below, producing a very large depression called a __________.

Back 19

Caldera

Front 20

20. ___________ divide most ocean basins roughly in half.

Back 20

Seafloor spreading

Front 21

21. A fracture in rock along which movement has occurred parallel to the surface is known as a __________.

Back 21

fault

Front 22

22. Peat, coal, lignite, and natural gas are all examples of __________.

Back 22

Fossil fuels

Front 23

23. Marble forms as a metamorphic product of what original rock?

Back 23

Limestone

Front 24

24. How do stratovolcanos differ from shield volcanos?

Back 24

the volcanic flow from a stratovolcano is much thicker and more explosive than the flow of a shield volcano.

Front 25

25. How does basaltic lava differ from felsic lava?

Back 25

felsic flow is viscous, balsaltic flow is thin

Front 26

26. What fundamental force is responsible for the layering most distinctive of sedimentary rock deposits?

Back 26

Pressure

Front 27

27. Globally, most active volcanoes are located along __________ boundaries.

Back 27

Tectonic Plates

Front 28

28. A __________ occurs where two tectonic plates meet, causing one to dive under the other.

Back 28

Subduction

Front 29

29. Continental rifting generates __________ faults.

Back 29

Continental rifting

Front 30

30. Deep oceanic trenches are associated with __________.

Back 30

ocean to ocean convergent plate boundaries

Front 31

31. Folding is the result of __________ plate tectonic processes.

Back 31

Compressional/Convergence

Front 32

32. Which geologic era are we currently living in?

Back 32

quaternery

Front 33

33. The idea proposed by Alfred Wegener to explain the continental shapes and positions is known as __________.

Back 33

the wilson cycle

Front 34

34. The __________ is probably the most famous strike-slip fault.

Back 34

Saint Andreas Fault

Front 35

35. Hydrocarbon deposits are best classified as __________ rock

Back 35

sedimentary

Front 36

36. The surface of the Earth is divided into individual rigid plates that move independently of one another on top of the __________.

Back 36

Asthenosphere

Front 37

37. Because of the extreme heat and pressure required, metamorphic rocks are generated most often ___________.

Back 37

deep below the surface

Front 38

38. During mantle convection, hot, less-dense magma _________ while cooler, denser magma _________.

Back 38

Rises, sinks

Front 39

39. What is the difference between endogenic and exogenic processes?

Back 39

internal processes (tectonic movement), external processes (weathering)

Front 40

40. Since lithospheric plates move around, most mountain building activity occurs at __________

Back 40

plate boundaries

Front 41

41. Magma that cools deep below the Earth's surface forms what type of rock? i

Back 41

intrinsic igneous rocks

Front 42

42. Faulting is the result of _____________ plate tectonic processes?

Back 42

Transform

Front 43

43. The lithosphere a region of Earth that is composed of the __________ and the __________.

Back 43

Crust and upper mantle

Front 44

44. Which type of volcanic features are most common around the Pacific Ocean basin?

Back 44

stratovolcanoes

Front 45

What are volcanoes in the United States only located on the West Coast?

Back 45

the Cascade Volcanoes

Front 46

46. Reverse and overthrust faults are formed through crust __________

Back 46

Compression

Front 47

47. Normal faults are formed through crust __________.

Back 47

Tension

Front 48

Explain why the earth's tectonic processes can be thought of as a giant recycling system?

Back 48

Because plates are submerged, melting to become magma, which resurfaces during tectonic processes

Front 49

The rising of land areas in response to the disappearance of the weight of glacial ice is called _________.

Back 49

post-glacial rebound

Front 50

The most recent glaciation in North America is called the ___________.

Back 50

Wisconsin Glaciation

Front 51

51. The period with mild climate between glacial advances is called an __________.

Back 51

interglaciation

Front 52

52. The depression resulting from a piece of trapped ice occupying an area during till deposition and then melting is called a __________.

Back 52

Kettle

Front 53

53. The ridge of material that collects at the farthest advance of the glacier is the __________.

Back 53

terminal moraine

Front 54

54. Sea ice that completely covers the sea surface is known as __________

Back 54

Pack ice

Front 55

55. When the amount of melting equals the amount of accumulation, the glacier is said to be __________.

Back 55

in equilibrium

Front 56

56. A mixture of different sized rock fragments deposited by a glacier is called __________.

Back 56

Till

Front 57

57. Sorted and layered materials deposited by a glacier are called __________.

Back 57

stratified drift

Front 58

58. The two types of drift are known as __________.

Back 58

glacial drift and stratified drift

Front 59

59. When pack ice breaks up, it becomes __________.

Back 59

Ice floes

Front 60

60. Floating ice of the ocean formed by direct freezing of ocean water is called __________.

Back 60

Sea ice

Front 61

61. Pieces of ice that break off of a glacier and drift out to open sea are __________.

Back 61

Icebergs

Front 62

62. A steep, pyramid shaped mountain formed by glacial erosion on all sides is known as __________.

Back 62

Horn

Front 63

63. A debris ridge along the side wall of an alpine glacier is known as a __________.

Back 63

lateral moraine, esker

Front 64

64. When two glaciers erode through a ridge making a pass, the landform created is known as a __________.

Back 64

arete

Front 65

65. The steep, bowl-shaped depression at the head of an alpine glacier is a __________.

Back 65

cirque

Front 66

66. A deep, steep-sided rock trench formed by erosion from alpine glaciers is known as a __________.

Back 66

Glacial through

Front 67

67. What conditions permit formation of glaciers?

Back 67

temperatures are low and snowfall is high

Front 68

68. Any large and moving natural accumulation of land ice is known as a __________.

Back 68

Glacier

Front 69

69. A lake that forms in the depression at the head of an alpine glacier is a __________.

Back 69

Tarn

Front 70

70. A glacier that forms in a mountainous area is called a __________.

Back 70

Mountian glacier, alpine glacier

Front 71

71. The grinding and scratching of rock fragments carried by a glacier against rocks or other fragments is called __________.

Back 71

glacial abrasion

Front 72

72. The lifting of blocks of rock from the bedrock as the glacier moves over it is known as glacial __________.

Back 72

erratic

Front 73

73. What forces drive movement of glaciers?

Back 73

Gravity

Front 74

74. Narrow, jagged, knife-like ridges formed by glaciers eroding into the ridge from both sides are ___________

Back 74

aretes

Front 75

75. The process of two alpine glaciers joining often produces a __________

Back 75

medial moraine

Front 76

76. The outer most or lowest end of a glacier is called its __________.

Back 76

glacial terminus

Front 77

77. A typical speed for glacial movement generally is __________.

Back 77

60m/day

Front 78

78. A large, thick plate of glacial ice moving outwards in all directions is a __________.

Back 78

ice sheet

Front 79

79. Where a stream valley flows into a glaciated valley, the landform might be a(n) __________.

Back 79

hanging valley

Front 80

80. What is radiometric dating?

Back 80

use of rate of radioactive decay of rock elements to determine age of rocks

Front 81

81. The study of Earth landforms are how landscapes are shaped over time is called_________.

Back 81

geomorphology

Front 82

82. What is a protoplanet?

Back 82

objects formed by collision of planetesimals more than 1 kilometer in diameter

Front 83

83. What is a planet?

Back 83

an object orbiting a star massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity

Front 84

84. The spherical central mass of the Earth composed largely of iron; consists of an outer liquid zone and an inner solid zone is called the __________.

Back 84

Core

Front 85

85. The rock layer of the Earth beneath the crust and surrounding the core, composed of ultramafic igneous rock of silicate minerals is called the __________.

Back 85

Mantle

Front 86

86. The outermost solid layer of the Earth, composed largely of silicate minerals is called __________.

Back 86

crust

Front 87

87. What are the three classes of rocks?

Back 87

igenous, sedimentary, metamorphic

Front 88

88. What is the difference between intrusive and extrusive igneous rock?

Back 88

intrusive igneous rock is formed from magma that solidifies below the earth's surface whereas extrusive igneous rock is formed from magma that is cooled rapidly at the surface or under the ocean

Front 89

89. Rock altered in physical or chemical composition by heat, pressure, or other processes taking place at a substantial depth below the surface is called__________.

Back 89

Metamorphic rock

Front 90

90. What is the difference between the lithosphere and the aesthenosphere?

Back 90

lithosphere is rigid outer shell of Earth (includes crust and upper mantle) whereas asthenosphere is the plastic layer below the lithosphere and is the softer, most fluid later of the mantle