earth science words ch6
Order by
29 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 stress | A force that acts on rock to change its shape or volume. |
| tension | the action of stretching something tight |
| compression | stress that squeezes rock until it folds or breaks |
| shearing | Stress that pushes masses of rock in opposite directions, in a sideways movement. |
| normal fault | an inclined fault in which the hanging wall appears to have slipped downward relative to the footwall |
| hanging wall | the upper wall of an inclined fault |
| foot wall | The block of rock that forms the lower half of a fault |
| reverse fault | a geological fault in which the upper side appears to have been pushed upward by compression |
| strike-slip fault | a type of fault where rocks on either side move past each other sideways with little up or down motion |
| anticline | a fold in rock that bends upward into an arch |
| syncline | a fold in rock that bends downward to form a valley |
| plateau | a large area of flat land elevated high above sea level |
| earthquake | the shaking that results from the movement of rock beneath Earth's surface |
| focus | The point beneath Earth's surface where rock breaks under stress and causes an earthquake |
| epicenter | the point on the Earth's surface directly above the focus of 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 | are the slowest and largest of the seismic waves and cause most of the destruction during an earthquake |
| mercalli scale | a scale that rates earthquakes according to their intensity and how much damage they cause at a particular place |
| magnitude | The measurement of an Earthquake's strength based on seismic waves and movement along faults. |
| richter scale | a scale that rates an earthquake's magnitude based on the size of its seismic waves |
| seismograph | an instrument that records earthquake waves |
| moment magnitude scale | a scale that rates earthquakes by estimating the total energy released by an earthquake |
| seismogram | the record of an earthquake's seismic waves produced by a seismograph |
| friction | the force that opposes the motion of one surface as it moves across another surface |
| liquefaction | The process by which an earthquake's violent movement suddenly turns loose soil into liquid mud |
| aftershock | an earthquake that occurs after a larger earthquake in the same area |
| tsunami | a giant wave caused by an earthquake on the ocean floor |
| base-isolated building | A building mounted on bearings designed to absorb the energy of an earthquake. |
First Time Here?
Welcome to Quizlet, a fun, free place to study. Try these flashcards, find others to study, or make your own.