Name ________________________________________________ Period ___________
Earth Science – Landforms- Words to Know
Define the vocabulary word and draw a picture or graphic illustrating the word.
Word
Definition
Landforms - A any natural formation of
rock and dirt, found on Earth
landform is any natural formation of rock and
dirt, found on Earth
Weathering – Process by which water,
wind, and ice wear down rock and other
exposed surfaces
Erosion – Movement of weathered rock
(sediment) by wind, water, ice, or gravity
Deposition – process by which wind,
water, and gravity leave eroded sediments
in new locations
Mass Movement – The downhill
movement of rock and soil because of
gravity
Glacier – Large mass of ice and snow that
exist year-round and is involved in erosion
Crust – The outermost, rocky layer of the
Earth
Picture/Graphic/Example
Asthenosphere – layer in the upper
part of the Earth’s mantle that is made of
material that can be reshaped and
deformed, and on which the continents can
move (Plastic or wax)
Lithosphere – Includes the crust and the
ridged upper part of the mantle
Core – The center and hottest layer of the
Earth consisting of an inner layer that is
solid and an outer layer that is molten
Lithospheric Plate – One of the pieces
of Earth’s rocky crust that rest and moves
on the semi-liquid mantle
Mantle – A layer of Earth’s surface, laying
just below the crust and above the inner
core
Outer Core – The layer inside the Earth
between the mantle and the inner core,
which has some properties of a liquid
(molten iron and nickel)
Inner Core – The innermost part of the
Earth, made of solid iron and nickel
Convection – The transfer of thermal
energy in a fluid (liquid or gas) in which
warmer fluid rises and cooler fluid sinks in a
convection current