Flashcards: Earth's Dynamic Geology — 16 cards

Earth's innermost layer —?

Solid, mainly iron and nickel

Outer core —?

Liquid, generates Earth's magnetic field

Mantle —?

Semi-molten rock, drives plate movement

Oceanic crust —?

Thin, dense, young crust

Continental crust —?

Thick, less dense, older crust

Destructive boundary —?

Plates converge, causes subduction and volcanoes

Constructive boundary —?

Plates diverge, magma forms new crust

Conservative boundary —?

Plates slide past, causes earthquakes

Collision boundary —?

Continental plates collide, forms mountains

Plate movement mechanism —?

Convection currents in mantle

Shield volcano —?

Broad, gentle, low-viscosity lava eruptions

Composite volcano —?

Tall, steep, high-viscosity magma, explosive

Earthquake focus —?

Origin point inside Earth where quake starts

Epicentre —?

Surface point directly above focus

Seismograph —?

Records seismic waves during earthquakes

Richter scale —?

Measures earthquake magnitude quantitatively