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Earth Science Final Study Guide
1. List the scientific method:
1. Ask a question
2. Research
3. Hypothesis
4. Experiment
5. Analysis
6. conclusion
2. What is a hypothesis?
a. An educated guess
3. What is a theory?
a. An explanation based on repeated experimentation
4. What is a crystal?
a. Solid in which the atoms are arranged in an orderly, repeating pattern.
5. What is a mineral?
a. Naturally occurring inorganic solid that has a definite chemical
composition and an orderly internal structure.
6. What is the Mohs scale?
a. A scale the measures the hardness of a mineral. Ranges from 1 (softest,
ex: talc) to 10 (hardest, ex: diamond)
7. Define the following:
a. Streak- Color of a mineral when it is in powdered form.
b. Hardness- Measure of how easily a mineral can be scratched, is determined by
the arrangement of the mineral's atoms.
c. Specific gravity- Ratio of a mineral's weight compared with the weight of an
equal volume of water.
d. Cleavage- Physical property of some minerals that causes them to break along
smooth, flat surfaces.
e. Fracture- Physical property of some minerals that causes them to break
with uneven ,rough, or jagged surfaces.
8. What is a rock? A rock is a mixture of rock- forming minerals, rock fragments, volcanic
glass, organic matter, and other natural materials.
9. Label (and understand) the rock cycle:
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10. What is an igneous rock? How is an igneous rock formed?
When hot magma cools and hardens, it forms igneous rock.
11. Differentiate between intrusive and extrusive
 Rocks that form from magma below the surface are called intrusive
igneous rocks.
 Rocks that formed as lava cooled on the surface of the Earth are called
extrusive igneous rocks.
12. What are the characteristics of the following types of lava:
a. Basaltic- dense, dark colored rocks. Rich in iron and magnesium but poor
in silica. Flows freely from volcanoes.
b. Granitic- low density and light colored. Contains lots of silica but less iron
and magnesium. Lava is released explosively during volcanic eruptions
due to stiff, thick texture.
c. Andesitic- balanced mineral composition. Volcanoes erupt violently.
13. What is a metamorphic rock? How is a metamorphic rock formed?
Rocks that have changed because of changes in temperature and pressure or
the presence of hot, watery fluids are called metamorphic rocks.
0 Rocks under the Earth’s surface are under a great amount of pressure from rock
layers above them.
0 Pressure and temperature can be just right to form magma, or rocks can undergo
changes to become different types of metamorphic rocks.
14. What is a sedimentary rock? How is a sedimentary rock formed?
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Sedimentary rocks form when sediments are pressed and cemented together or
when minerals form from solutions.
15. What is a fossil?
Fossils are remains, imprints, or traces of prehistoric organisms.
16. Indicate what type of fossil the following describe (choose from: Permineralized
remains, carbon film, mold, cast, and index fossil)
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
Silhouettes of small marine animals in a thin film of carbon CARBON FILM
A cavity left where a shell fossil dissolved away MOLD
Mineral crystals formed in a cavity that a fossil left behind CAST
A wooly mammoth found frozen in Siberia ORIGINAL REMAINS
A dinosaur track in the Glen Rose Formation in Texas TRACE FOSSIL
The remains of a species of marine animal that existed only for 100 million years and
was geographically widespread INDEX FOSSIL
17. What is the difference between relative age and absolute age?
How old something is in comparison with something else is relative age.
Absolute Age- age, in years, of a rock or other object; determined by properties
of atoms.
18. What is radiometric dating and why is it used?
Calculating the absolute age of a rock using the ratio of parent isotope to
daughter product and the half life of the parent is called radiometric dating. It is
used to find the absolute age of a fossil or rock.
19. List the following divisions of time in order from longest to shortest amount of
time: Epoch, Era, Eon, Period
Longest: Eon, Era, Period, Epoch Shortest
20. List the following in order from Longest ago to most recent: Mesozoic Era,
Precambrian Time, Cenozoic Era, Paleozoic Era
Longest Precambrian Time, Paleozoic Era, Mesozoic Era, Cenozoic Era
Most
Ago
Recent
21. What is the geologic time scale?
Earth’s History divided into time units that make up a geologic time scale.
22. Why don’t we have a lot of fossils from the Precambrian time?
a. many Precambrian rocks were deeply buried, causing the fossils in
them to be changed by heat and pressure.
b. most Precambrian organisms lacked hard parts
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23. What is physical weathering? Mechanical weathering occurs when rocks are
broken apart by physical processes. The overall chemical makeup of the rock
stays the same- each fragment of rock has the same characteristics as the
original rock.
24. What is chemical weathering?
Chemical Weathering occurs when chemical reactions dissolve the minerals in
rocks or change them into different minerals.
25.
Classify the following as Chemical or Mechanical Weathering:
a. A car bumper rusting chemical
b. Acid from plant roots dissolving rock chemical
c. Ice cracking a sidewalk mechanical
d. Tree roots cracking a home’s foundation mechanical
e. Carbonic acid dissolving limestone chemical
26.
What is soil?
Soil is a mixture of weathered rock, decayed organic matter, mineral
fragments, water, and air.
27.
What is unique about the soil in the Blackland Prairie area of
Alabama?
Soil is dark, has lots of humus, and is fertile (good for farming)
28. What are some of the harmful effects of soil erosion?
 plants do not grow well when topsoil has been removed.
 Can result in things like mud/ landslides
 Sediment pollution of waterways
29. What is the continental drift hypothesis?
• Continents moved slowly to their current locations.
1. All continents were once connected as one large landmass now called
Pangaea.
2. The land mass broke apart, and the continents drifted to their present
positions.
30. What is the theory of seafloor spreading?
a. Hot, less dense material below the Earth’s crust rises upward to the
surface of mid-ocean ridges.
b. Then, it flows sideways, carrying the seafloor away from the ridge.
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c. As the seafloor spreads apart, magma moves up and flows from the
cracks, cools, and forms new seafloor.
31. What is a mid ocean ridge and how did it form?
Underwater mountain ranges, formed from magma escaping due to
seafloor spreading.
32. Label the layers of Earth:
33. Define the following types of boundaries:
a. Divergent- plates move apart
b. Convergent- plates move together
c. Transform boundaries- plates slide past each other
34. What is a convection current?
The cycle of heating, rising, cooling, and sinking of material
35. How do convection currents form in the Earth’s Mantle?
Heat from inside the Earth (due to left over heat from the formation of
Earth and radioactive activity inside the core) heats material in the mantle
up. That material becomes less dense and rises towards the surface,
where it cools, condenses, and sinks again.
36. What is an Earthquake?
Earthquake- vibrations produced by breaking rock.
37. What is a seismograph?
38. . Seismograph- measures seismic waves.
a) consists of a rotating drum of paper and a pendulum with an
attached pen.
b) The paper record of a seismic event is called a seismogram.
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39. What is the Richter scale?
Magnitude- measure of energy released by an earthquake, determined by the
Richter scale and based on the height of the lines on a seismogram. The Richter
scale has no upper limit.
40. What is a tsunami?
Large ocean wave caused by seismic activity
41. What is a volcano?
Opening in Earth that erupts gases, ash, and lava.
42. How do volcanoes form?
Volcanoes form when magma flows out of a surface opening called a vent; a
steep walled depression around the vent is called a crater. Volcanoes often form
where plates are moving together or moving apart.
43. What are the 3 things that we discussed that affect how violent a volcanic
eruption will be?
 Amount of water vapor in the magma
 They type of magma (basaltic, andesitic, or granitic)
 If the volcano is at a convergent plate boundary
44. What are the three types of places on Earth where volcanoes form?
 Convergent plate boundaries
 Divergent plate boundaries
 Hot Spots
45. Label the following diagram of Earth’s atmosphere layers:
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1. Label this pie chart of Earth’s atmospheric composition utilizing the following
terms: oxygen, nitrogen, and other gases.
46. What are ultraviolet rays? What layer of the atmosphere protects us from these
UV rays?
a. Rays produced by the sun which can damage cells and cause cancer.
The ozone layer in the stratosphere protects us from UV Rays.
47. Define the following terms:
a. Radiation- energy transferred in rays or waves.
b. Conduction- transfer of energy when molecules bump into each other
through contact.
c. Convection- transfer of heat by the flow of a material.
i. Molecules move closer together, making the air more dense, and
air pressure rises.
ii. Cold air sinks, pushing up warm air, which then cools and sinks,
pushing up more warm air.
48. What “makes” wind?
Wind is caused by the uneven heating of the Earth’s surface. Air that is
warmer is spread further apart, making it less dense and an area of low
pressure. Air that is cooler is pressed closer together, making it denser
and an area of high pressure. Air will always move from an area of high
pressure to an area of low pressure.
49. What is the Coriolis effect?
The Coriolis effect- rotation of the Earth causes moving air and water to shift to
the right, north of the equator, and to the left, south of the equator
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50. How is climate different than weather?
Climate is a weather pattern over a long period of time (for example: the South
has a hot, humid climate). The weather is the conditions in the atmosphere at a
particular moment.
51. Explain how the following factors affect climate:

Latitude – the further away from the equator you are, the more likely you
are to have cooler temperatures due to less direct sunlight.

Bodies of Water- bodies of water regulate temperatures by causing ocean
and land breezes. In addition, bodies of water can bring warm waters to
places far from the equator due to ocean currents, making coastal areas
warmer than they would be otherwise.

Mountains- Mountains affect their own climate due to the fact that he
higher the elevation, the colder the temperature. In addition, mountains
block air from flowing inland as it comes off of the sea. The mountains
force the air upwards, causing the water vapor the air is carrying to cool
and condense on one side of the mountain. That side of the mountain will
have frequent rain and nice temperatures. The air that comes down the
other side of the mountain is dry, resulting in deserts.

Cities- materials in cities such as asphalt and concrete retain heat,
causing cities to be warmer than surrounding areas. Pollution and smog
can aggravate this effect.
52. What causes the seasons?
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Earth’s axial tilt causes the northern hemisphere to be closer to the sun
during some parts of the year and the southern hemisphere to be closer to
the sun during others. Thus, the closer to the poles of Earth you are, you
will see greater seasonal variation due to your position relative to the sun.
The equator does not see much seasonal variation because it receives
direct sunlight year round.
53. Why are the oceans salty but most lakes and rivers are not?
Lakes and rivers are not salty because they dump their salts and minerals into
the oceans.
54. Label the following on this picture: continental shelf, continental slope, abyssal
plain, and mid-ocean ridge.
Continental
Shelf
Continental Slope
Abyssal plain
Mid- Ocean
Ridge
55. Briefly describe the following:
- Continental shelf- gradually sloping end of a continent that extends
beneath the ocean.
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- Continental slope- ocean basin feature that dips steeply down from the
continental shelf.
- abyssal plain- flat seafloor area from 4,000 m to 6,000 m below the ocean
surface, formed by the deposition of sediments.
- mid ocean ridge- mountain ranges on the ocean floor formed by seafloor
spreading
- trench- long, narrow, steep- sided depression in the seafloor formed where one
crustal plate sinks beneath another.