Earthquake Vocabulary
Notecards
Weathering
• Process of breaking down the Earth’s material by
natural processes of water, wind, ice, and
chemicals into smaller pieces or sediments
• Destructive Process
Erosion
• Weathered or broken down rock and other
material are moved by natural processes, such as
water or wind, from place to place
• Destructive Movement
Deposition
• Process where sediments are settled or laid down
in a new location
• Constructive Process
Constructive Force
• Force that builds up features on the Earth’s
surface or on an existing landform
Destructive Force
• Forces that destroy features on the Earth’s
surface
Constructive vs. Destructive Forces
Venn Diagram
• Weathering
• Erosion
• Deposition
• Earthquake
• Volcano
• Mountains
• Islands
• Sand Dune
• Canyon
• Delta
• Tsunami
• Flood
• Sandbar
• Landslides
• Glacier
Focus
• Point of origin underground where the rocks break
producing vibrations and creating an earthquake
Earth’s Surface
D
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Fault Line
Epicenter
• Point above ground on the surface directly above
the focus
Earth’s Surface
D
R
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Fault Line
You Need:
• Clicker
• Checking Pen
• Bad Vibrations Worksheet
• Earthquake Vocabulary Notecards
Compression
• Force that squeezes rock or an object until it
folds or breaks
Tension
• Force that occurs to stretch an object or rock
Shear
• Force that pushes a mass of rock or an object in
opposite directions
Fault Line Types
• Normal Fault – blocks of crust are pulled away and
one block falls down
– Occurs at Divergent Boundary with Tension Force
• Reverse Fault – blocks of crust are pushed
together and one block slides up
– Occurs at Convergent Boundary with Compression Force
• Strike-Slip Fault – blocks of crust slide past each
other with no up or down motion
– Occurs at Transform Boundary with Shear Force
Normal Fault Pictures
**Do NOT Copy**
blocks of crust are pulled away and one block falls down
Reverse Fault Pictures
**Do NOT Copy**
blocks of crust are pushed together and one block slides up
Strike-Slip Fault Pictures
**Do NOT Copy**
blocks of crust slide past each other with no up or down motion
Types of Seismic Waves
• P-Wave (Primary) – first wave from the focus
– Push-pull wave that can travel through solids & liquids
– Fastest wave
• S-Wave (Secondary) – slow wave from the focus
– Vibrates crust side to side & up or down
– Travels only through solids
• Surface Wave – slowest wave from the epicenter
– Come from P- & S-Waves that reach the surface
– Produce most damage
– Stronger near the epicenter
Richter Scale
• Measures strength of seismic waves on a
seismograph
• Scale of 1-10
– 10 is the strongest
– Each number is 10 times stronger than the number
before
Richter Scale
**Do NOT Copy**
When You’re Finished
• BBC Plate Tectonics Test Bite **Headphones**
• Fault Motion Simulations
• Constructive Forces
• Destructive Forces
• Earthquake Interactive
• Forces of Nature
**Takes a Few Minutes to Load**
• Beat the Quake
**Headphones**
• Shake, Rattle, & Slide
**Headphones**
Volcanoes Vocabulary
Notecards
Magma
• Molten rock found beneath the Earth’s surface
Lava
• Molten rock found on the Earth’s surface
Tephra
• Pyroclastic material of any size rock fragments,
ash, and/or dust
Viscosity
• Measures the thickness of molten material
• High viscosity = thick
• Low viscosity = more fluid
Volcano Activity Levels
• Active – has erupted in recent time & can erupt
again at any time
– Look for Seismic Activity
– Example: Mt. St. Helens
• Dormant – no eruption in recent time, but has a
record of past eruptions
– Example: Mt. Rainier in Washington
• Extinct – not known to have erupted in modern
history or to ever erupt again
– Example: Crater Lake
Types of Volcanoes
• Cinder Cone – small base with steep sides
– Made of Cinders
– Explosive eruption
• Shield – large, wide base with gentle sloping sides
– Calm lava flows
• Composite-Strato – tall, large, mountain-like
volcano with snow cap
– Alternating eruptions of lava & tephra
– Explosive eruption
Types of Lava
• AA – hot, thin, fast flowing
– Hardens with a rough, jagged edge
• Pahoehoe – thicker, slow moving lava
– Hardens with smooth, ropy appearance
• Pillow – forms when lava erupts & cools suddenly
underwater
Types of Volcanic Eruptions
• Determined by amount of water vapor & gases and
chemical composition of magma
• Explosive eruption – thick magma, high
pressure/gas & water content
– Example: Mt. St. Helens
• Quiet eruption – fluid magma, low gas pressure &
water content
– Example: Hawaiian Islands
Mt. Kilauea
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