Science Flashcards
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Created by:
WayneRooney10 on June 9, 2011
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48 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 astronomy | the study of the moon, stars, and other objects in space |
| axis | an imaginary line that passes through Earth's center and the north and south poles, about which Earth rotates |
| revolution | the movement of an object around another object |
| orbit | the path of an object as it revolves around another object in space |
| latitude | a measurement of distance from the equator, expressed in degrees north or south |
| solstice | The two days of the year on which the noon sun is directly overhead at either 23.5 degrees South or 23.5 degrees North |
| equinox | the two days of the year on which neither hemisphere is tilted toward or away from the sun |
| vernal equinox | the day of the year that marks the beginning of spring in the northern hemisphere |
| autumnal equinox | The day of the year that marks the beginning of fall in the Northern hemisphere |
| phase | one of the different shapes of the moon as seen from Earth |
| solar eclipse | the blocking of sunlight to earth that occurs when the moon is directly between the sun and earth |
| umbra | the darkest part of a shadow |
| penumbra | the part of a shadow surrounding the darkest part |
| lunar eclipse | the blocking of sunlight to the moon that occurs when Earth is directly between the sun and the moon |
| tide | The rise and fall of the level of water in the ocean |
| gravity | attractive force between two objects that depends on the masses of the objects and the distance between them |
| spring tide | a tide with the greatest difference between low and high tides |
| neap tide | a tide with the least difference between low and high tides |
| nuclear fusion | the process by which hydrogen atoms join together to form helium, releasing energy |
| core | The central part of the sun, where nuclear fusion takes place |
| photosphere | the inner layer of the suns atmosphere |
| chromosphere | The middle layer of the sun's atmosphere |
| corona | outer layer of the sun's atmosphere |
| solar wind | a stream of electrically charged particles produced by the sun's corona |
| sunspots | areas of gas on the sun's surface that are cooler than the gases around them |
| prominences | A loop of gas that protrudes from the sun's surface, linking parts of sunspot regions |
| solar flares | an explosion of hydrogen gas from the sun's surface that occurs when the loops in sunspot regions suddenly connects |
| continental drift | the hypothesis that the continents slowly move across Earth's surface |
| fossil | a trace of an ancient organism that has been preserved in rock |
| mid-ocean ridge | an undersea mountain chain where new ocean floor is produced; a divergent plate boundary |
| sonar | a device that determines the distance of an object under water by recording echoes of sound waves |
| deep-ocean trench | a deep valley along the ocean floor beneath which oceanic crust slowly sinks toward the mantle |
| subduction | the process by which oceanic crust sinks beneath a deep-ocean trench and back into the mantle at a convergent plate boundary |
| sea-floor spreading | the process by which molten material adds new oceanic crust to the ocean floor |
| focus | The point beneath Earth's surface where rock breaks under stress and causes an earthquake |
| epicenter | the point on Earth's surface directly above an earthquake's focus |
| seismograph | a device that records ground movements caused by seismic waves as they move through Earth |
| magnitude | The measurement of an Earthquake's strength based on seismic waves and movement along faults |
| Mercalli scale | A scale that rates earthquakes according to their intensity and how much damage they cause |
| Richter Scale | a scale that rates seismic waves as measured by a particular type of mechanical seismograph |
| moment magnitude scale | a scale that rates earthquakes by estimating the total energy released by an earthquake |
| seismic waves | vibrations that travel through Earth carrying the energy released during an earthquake |
| P waves | A type of seismic wave that compresses and expands the ground |
| S waves | A type of seismic wave that moves the ground up and down or side to side |
| surface waves | a type of seismic wave that forms when P waves and S waves reach Earth's surface |
| rotation | the spinning motion of a planet on its axis |
| eclipse | the partial or total blocking of one object in space by another |
| Pangaea | the name of the single landmass that broke apart 200 million years ago and gave rise to today's continents |
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