Plate Tectonics flashcards

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What is meant by “Continental fit” in this lesson?Evidence for moving plates: Corresponding continental margins helped motivate continental-drift hypotheses but are not sufficient evidence alone.
What is meant by “Fossil correlation” in this lesson?Evidence for moving plates: Matching fossils on separated landmasses can support former geographical connections.
What is meant by “Seafloor spreading” in this lesson?Evidence for moving plates: New oceanic crust forms at spreading ridges and moves away as plates diverge.
What is meant by “Magnetic stripes” in this lesson?Evidence for moving plates: Symmetrical magnetic patterns record reversals as oceanic crust forms and spreads.
What is meant by “Ocean-crust ages” in this lesson?Evidence for moving plates: Oceanic crust generally becomes older with increasing distance from a spreading ridge.
What is meant by “Geodetic measurement” in this lesson?Evidence for moving plates: Satellite-based measurements directly track present-day surface motion.
What is meant by “Divergent boundary” in this lesson?Plate boundaries: Plates move apart and new crust may form as mantle material rises.
What is meant by “Convergent boundary” in this lesson?Plate boundaries: Plates move toward one another, causing subduction or continental collision.
What is meant by “Transform boundary” in this lesson?Plate boundaries: Plates slide laterally past one another along a boundary.
What is meant by “Subduction” in this lesson?Plate boundaries: A lithospheric plate descends into the mantle beneath another plate.
What is meant by “Continental collision” in this lesson?Plate boundaries: Two buoyant continental masses converge and thicken crust, commonly building mountains.
What is meant by “Lithosphere” in this lesson?Plate boundaries: The lithosphere is the relatively rigid crust and uppermost mantle divided into plates.
What is meant by “Fault” in this lesson?Earthquakes and volcanoes: A fault is a fracture or fracture zone along which rock blocks move.
What is meant by “Focus” in this lesson?Earthquakes and volcanoes: The focus is the subsurface location where an earthquake rupture begins.
What is meant by “Epicenter” in this lesson?Earthquakes and volcanoes: The epicenter is the surface point directly above an earthquake's focus.
What is meant by “Seismic waves” in this lesson?Earthquakes and volcanoes: Seismic waves carry earthquake energy through Earth or along its surface.
What is meant by “Magma and lava” in this lesson?Earthquakes and volcanoes: Magma is molten material below the surface; lava is molten material at the surface.
What is meant by “Hazard assessment” in this lesson?Earthquakes and volcanoes: Hazard assessment estimates potential dangerous processes without claiming exact short-term prediction.