Lithosphere Vocabulary
Students must master the following vocabulary words during our study of the Lithosphere. There will
be a summative test on these terms at some point during the next few weeks.
Term
Definition
Crust
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Thin layer of rock above the earth’s mantle.
Includes all dry land and ocean basins.
Continental crust is about 40 KM thick. Oceanic
crust is 7 KM thick.
Mantle
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Layer of rock between Earth’s outer core and
crust.
Rock is hot enough to flow in convection currents
– which push the continental plates around.
Earth’s thickest layer.
Page B71
Outer Core
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Layer of molten metal.
Mostly nickel and iron.
Surrounds the earth’s inner core.
Page B70
Inner Core
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Solid sphere of metal.
Made of mostly nickel and iron
Page B70
Lithosphere
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Layer of the Earth made up of the crust and the
rigid part of the upper mantle.
Broken into tectonic plates.
Page B71
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Tectonic Plate/Continental Plate
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Pangaea
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Plate Tectonics / Continental Drift
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One of the large, moving pieces into which Earth’s
lithosphere is broken.
Commonly carries both continental and oceanic
crust.
Page B73
The name for the super-continent that Alfred
Wegener believed existed 200 million years ago.
Page B76
The theory proposed by Alfred Wegener that
suggested that the earth’s crust was made of a
series of tectonic plates that were constantly
moving.
The evidence for Wegener’s theory included:
finding fossils of plants in cold climates where
they shouldn’t have grown, finding fossils of the
same animal on distant continents, finding a midocean ridge where the rocks were getting older
the further they were found from the ridge.
Earthquake
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Volcano
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Shaking of the ground caused by the sudden
movement of large blocks of rock along fault lines
where two tectonic plates meet.
Page B105
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An opening in the crust through which molten
rock, rock fragments and hot gasses erupt.
A mountain built up from erupted materials.
Page B146
Primary Waves
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Earthquake waves that move underground.
The fastest type of earthquake wave.
Can travel through solids and liquids.
Secondary Waves
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Earthquake waves that move underground.
Can travel through solids but not liquids.
The second fastest type of earthquake wave.
Surface Waves
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Earthquake waves that move along the surface.
The slowest type of earthquake wave.
Does the most damage.
Focus
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In an earthquake, the point underground where
rocks first begin to break and move.
Page B112
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Epicenter
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Weathering
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Soil
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Parent Rock
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The spot on the surface of the earth directly
above the focus of an earthquake.
The place where the most damage is done by an
earthquake.
Page B112
The process by which natural forces break down
rocks.
Can be done by wind, water, ice and tree roots.
Page A115
A thin layer of weathered rock, humus (decaying
plant and animal matter), air and water found on
the surface of the earth that can support life.
Has three horizons – A horizon, B horizon, C
horizon.
A horizon is the most fertile because it contains
the most humus.
Page A124
The rock that makes up the majority of the soil in
an area.
Determines the kinds of minerals and elements
that you’ll find in soil – and therefore, determines
how healthy soil will be.
Erosion
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Terracing
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Contour Plowing
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Windbreaks
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Crop Rotation
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Igneous Rock
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Metamorphic Rock
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Sedimentary Rock
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Minerals
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The process in which sediment is picked up and
moved from one place to another.
Page A145
Carving flat, steplike areas into a hillside in order
to hold rainwater and keep it from running
downhill.
A soil protection strategy.
Page A136
Plowing along the curves of a slope in order to
keep rainwater from running downhill.
A soil protection strategy
Page A136
Planting rows of trees between fields in order to
reduce the force of winds that can carry soil away.
A soil protection strategy.
Page A136
Planting different crops on the same field in
different years or growing seasons.
Helps to replenish essential nutrients found in soil
and to keep soil healthy for the long term.
Page A135
Rock that forms as molten rock cools and
becomes solid.
Page A78
Rock that changes from one type to another after
intense heat and pressure is applied.
Like the “Chinese Fire Drill” or “Musical Chairs” of
the rock world.
Bonds between elements break and elements
rearrange themselves.
Page A78
Rock formed as pieces of older rock and other
loose materials get pressed or cemented together
and build up in layers.
Most common rocks found on the crust of the
earth.
Rely on weathering to form.
Like the “Recycle Bins” of the rock world.
Page A78
A combination of two or more elements that join
together with chemical bonds.
Is always a solid.
Page A43