| A | B |
|---|
| continental drift | the slow movement of the Earth’s landmasses |
| convergent boundary | where plates are pushed together (creates folded mountains, volcanoes, and ocean mountains) |
| crust | the outer layer of the Earth; made of solid rock (5-70m thick) |
| delta | a fan shaped sediment deposit formed at the mouth of a river |
| deposition | a process in which wind, water, and gravity leave eroded sediments in new locations |
| divergent boundary | where plates are moving apart (creates mid-ocean ridges) |
| earthquake | a shaking movement of the ground caused by a sudden shift of the Earth’s crust |
| fault | a location where one of the Earth’s plates meets another |
| fossil | the remains of an organism that lived in the past (cast, mold, and imprint fossils) |
| erosion | the carrying away of sediments caused by wind, ice, and water |
| igneous rock | formed when hot, melted materials (magma) cool and harden (found where volcanoes exist or once existed) |
| inner core | the center region of Earth made of solid iron and nickel (about 1 |
| lava | molten rock material that has pushed up from a volcano or crack in the Earth; magma that has reached the surface |
| luster | the way a mineral reflects light |
| magma | hot, melted rock that makes up the Earth’s mantle (not quite liquid, but soft and bendable like putty) |
| mantle | the middle layer of the Earth; made of melted rock that flows like thick, lumpy gravy (about 2,900m thick) |
| outer core | the layer of Earth made of liquid iron and nickel and just below the mantle (about 2,250m thick) |
| Pangaea | an ancient landmass believed to have broken up to form today’s continents |
| plate tectonics | a theory that the Earth’s crust is broken into distinct moving plates, or pieces |
| sedimentary rock | formed when layers of sediment are pressed together (found where water is or once existed; sometimes contains fossils) |
| volcano | a mountain with vents through which lava, gases, and ash erupt |
| weathering | the breaking down of minerals and rocks into small sediments (Wind, water, ice, and chemical reactions cause weathering. |
| metamorphic rock | hard matter formed by extreme heat and pressure deep within the Earth |
| sliding (transform) boundary | where plates are sliding past each other (creates fault lines and earthquakes) |
| geologist | scientist that studies the earth |
| paleontologist | scientist that studies fossils |
