ESC 1000

Which of the following is an accurate interpretation of the properties of the outer core and mantle based on P-wave behavior?

Wave velocity is slower in the outer core than in the mantle.

The Himalayas are currently growing because at their location

a continental plate is colliding with another continental plate.

Except for the mediterranean sea, the oldest ocean crust found in the oceans is around 180 Ma. Why is there no older oceanic crust?

all older ocean crust has been subducted into the mantle

What do geologists call an earthquake that occurs within a tectonic plate, far from its boundaries?

intraplate earthquake

The center of a mid-ocean ridge is where

new oceanic lithosphere is being created

During the process of seafloor spreading,

new seafloor is formed at ridges.

The Earth's atmosphere is mostly composed of which two gases?

nitrogen oxygen

The images show the internal structure (left) and finished exterior (right) of the Pearl River Tower, a modern skyscraper recently built in Guangzhou, China. This building most clearly shows which of the following earthquake engineering elements?

crossbeams to increase shear strength

Which of the following is associated with intrusive igneous activity?

crystallization of magma underground

Which describes the melting that takes place when deep, hot rock rises to shallower depths without cooling?

decompression melting

Which of the following patterns would you observe if you started at sea level and traveled upward through the Earth's atmosphere to an elevation of 100 km?

decreasing pressure decreasing density changes from warming trends to cooling trends at distinct boundaries

What else can affect the number of deaths or amount of damage caused by an earthquake?

depth of the earthquake magnitude of the earthquake distance from the earthquake education of populace type of material on which structures are built

The process by which the Earth developed its layered interior is called

differentiation.

This diagram shows the South Island of New Zealand. The Alpine fault is a plate boundary that cuts across the land in a northeasterly-southwesterly direction. Gold was discovered in distinctive rocks near Queenstown on the southeast side of the fault. The same distinctive gold-bearing rocks are found on the northwestern side of the fault, but they lie about 480 km to the northeast. Evidence suggests that slip along the fault has been occurring for about 20 million years. Most of the displacement on the fault is strike-slip (only about 10 km of vertical motion has occurred).

dominantly transform

Which of the following is considered a warning sign of imminent eruption?

earthquake activity

The Modified Mercalli Intensity scale measures

earthquake damage.

Accretionary prisms form as a result of what process?

subduction

In which geological setting is flux melting taking place?

subduction zone

The time at which two continents separated in the past is determined by?

the age of the oldest ocean crust adjacent to the passive margins at the edges of the ocean basin

Which of the following is an example of anthropogenic change?

the current global warming trend

Which factors control the cooling time of magma within the crust?

the depth at which the magma cools the volume of the intruded magma

The S-wave shadow zone indicates

the outer core is liquid.

Which of the following was used as evidence by Wegener to develop the theory of continental drift?

the presence of matching mountain chains on continents currently separated by oceans

Which of the following mid-ocean ridges has been spreading fastest over the last 67 million years?

the ridge between Australia and Antartica

The relative rates of spreading at mid-ocean ridges are determined by comparing what features?

the width of the age band as viewed on a map

Which of the following has faulting but no volcanic activity?

transform plate boundary

The news media often report an earthquake's magnitude on the Richter scale. Which of the following items are characteristics of a Richter earthquake magnitude?

uses a logarithmic scale represents the amount of energy released determined from the amplitude recorded by a single seismometer

Lahars are a volcanic hazard that can occur both during an eruption and while a volcano is dormant. Which event below must happen for a lahar to form while a volcano is dormant?

very heavy rainfall over the dormant volcano

The largest and most destructive tsunamis in human history have been associated with which of the following?

volcanic eruptions subduction-zone earthquakes

Order the steps of volcanic island arc formation.

1. A subduction trench forms where the subducting plate bends downward into the mantle 2. An Accretionary prism begins to form 3. Magma, created by flux melting of the mantle, rises through the overriding plate 4. Lava erupts onto the surface, forming volcanoes

Order the steps of continental volcanic arc formation.

1. A subduction trench forms where the subducting plate bends downward into the mantle. 2. An accretionary prism begins to form 3. Magma, created by flux melting of the mantle, rises through the continental lithosphere 4. Lava erupts onto the surface, forming volcanoes.

Order the events chronologically that occurred in the formation of our Solar System.

1. Accretionary disk formed 2. Protosun formed 3. Rigs formed in protoplanetary disk 4. Planetesimals collected to form protoplanets

Place in chronological order the events that led to the formation of the Earth.

1. Earth cleared its orbit of all other matter, making it a true planet 2. The moon formed 3. Volcanic activity occurred, releasing gasses 4. An atmosphere formed

Scientists have been able to determine the numerical age of the most important events in history by using a combination of radiometric age dating and mathematical modeling. Please put the accompanying events in order from youngest (top) to oldest (bottom).

1. Formation of the moon 2. Formation of the Earth 3. Nuclear fusion in protosun 4. Big bang

Order the steps involved in fractional crystallization.

1. Magma, after entering through the bottom of the magma chamber, reaches the top of the chamber where temperatures are lower 2. Magnesium and iron-rich minerals begin to crystallize 3. Mineral crystals, having a higher density than liquid magma, sink to the bottom of the magma chamber 4. The magma shifts toward a more intermediate composition

Place in chronological order the events that led to life as we know it on Earth.

1. Oceans formed 2. Photosynthetic organisms appeared on Earth 3. Oxygen (O2) accumulated in the atmosphere 4. Multicellular life developed rapidly on Earth

Order the steps in supercontinent formation and breakup.

1. Subduction consumes an ocean basin 2. continents collide and form a supercontinent 3. rifting takes place 4. seafloor spreading produces new lithosphere, and continents move apart

Order the steps that lead to seafloor spreading.

1. The asthenosphere beneath diverging plates rises and melts 2. A magma chamber forms beneath the ridge axis 3. Magma rises to the surface and erupts via submarine volcanoes 4. Newly formed crust is moved laterally away from the ridge

Suppose that aliens have launched a space probe towards Earth to investigate our planet. Place the images of Earth's features in the order the space probe will encounter them as it journeys from outer space to Earth's surface.

1. Van Allen radiation belts 2. Planet Earth 3. Oceans 4. Land

Order the steps that lead to assimilation.

1. a magma forms and begins to migrate through the crust 2. blocks of the surrounding silica-rich crust break off and become incorporated into the magma 3. incorporated crustal blocks within the magma melt, mixing with the magma 4. the amount of silica in the magma increases and the magma composition changes accordingly

Which of the following are true regarding the relationship between mid-ocean ridges and the age of the oceanic crust?

1. it gets older in both directions as you move away from the mid-ocean ridge 2. bands of similar age are parallel to mid-ocean ridges

Order events chronologically that can lead to a subduction-related tsunami.

1. overriding plate "sticks" to the subducting slab 2. The overriding plate deforms, and strain builds 3. Slip occurs and the overriding plate moves back into position, displacing a large amount of the seafloor 4. A bugle of water is created at the sea surface and spreads out as a series of waves

If a mountain range has a crust that is 50km thick and a surface elevation of 3 km asl, how much erosion is necessary to reduce the elevation to asl

15-18km

To find the location of an earthquake's epicenter, you need to calculate the distance from the epicenter to ____ different seismometer stations.

3

Use the map below, showing GPS measurements of plate motion, to determine the average relative plate velocity of the African and North America plates.

3.4 cm/yr

What is the oldest oceanic crust in north atlantic ocean?

47-68 Ma

Examining sedimentary bedding in a particular geologic area reveals disrupted layers that formed 260, 820, 1,200, 2,100, and 2,300 years ago. Assuming that all the earthquakes that have occurred in this area are represented by these disrupted layers, what is the recurrence interval of earthquakes in this area?

510 years

During what approximate time period did Antarctica separate from Australia?

68-83Ma

The Hawaiian Islands, a chain of volcanic islands located in the middle of the Pacific Plate, extend northwest across the Pacific as shown in the figure. The island of Hawaii is the youngest, and the islands get progressively older to the northwest. How are the positions of the islands explained by plate tectonic theory?

A hot spot is currently situated under Hawaii, and the Pacific Plate is moving across it in a northwesterly direction.

Identify signs that could be observed at a beach as a tsunami approaches.

A loud ocean roar can be heard. A wall of turbulent, frothing water is visible. The sea recedes significantly from the coastline.

The larger a planet or moon is, the more likely it is to

A. have a spherical shape.

Select statements true of fracture zones.

A.Fracture zones can act as transform boundaries between two actively spreading ridge segments. B.Earthquakes can occur along fracture zones. C.Fracture zones are situated perpendicular to mid-ocean ridge segments.

Identify statements true of the lithosphere and asthenosphere.

A.The lithosphere "floats" on the asthenosphere. B.The asthenosphere underlies the lithosphere. C.The asthenosphere is relatively soft compared to the rigid lithosphere.

Which of the following statements describe a part of the scientific method?

A.You notice that a certain plant seems to bloom shortly before it rains; you are curious and decide to investigate this phenomenon. B.You design an experiment in which you will record your observations every day for one year of when the plant blooms and when it rains. D.You develop a hypothesis for the phenomenon you have noticed, which states that "the plant always blooms shortly before it rains." E.You notice that during the winter months, the plant does not bloom shortly before it rains, and thus you decide that your hypothesis, which states that the plant always blooms before it rains, is incorrect.

Which of the following statements regarding the Big Bang theory are true?

All matter in the Universe was once confined to a single point. The Universe is considerably older than Earth.

As the map below shows, the oldest seafloor is generally less than 200 million years old. Why?

All oceanic lithosphere eventually gets subducted beneath the continents by the time it is 200 million years old.

Identify statements true of earthquakes.

An estimated one million earthquakes occur each year, but most of them are small. Most earthquakes are the consequence of plate tectonics. Most earthquakes occur along plate boundaries.

Using the phase diagram shown below, determine which statement best describes what happens as a rock is moved from point A to point B.

As a rock is moved up in the Earth, it is subjected to slightly lower temperatures and much lower pressures, and it begins to melt.

Liquefaction

B. can affect sand layers below the ground surface and cause them to erupt as sand volcanoes or sand boils.

Based on the Narrative Art Video about the formation of the Solar System, identify ways in which heavier elements form.

Based on the Narrative Art Video about the formation of the Solar System, identify ways in which heavier elements form. In stars

Sort the following events by whether they occur before or during an earthquake.

Before an Earthquake: elastic deformation accumulates, elastic deformation relaxes, rocks move up to a couple inches per year During an earthquake: seismic waves are produced, rocks move up to 5,000 mph, rocks "bounce" back and forth

In the figure, the magnetic anomaly pattern is mirrored on either side of the central ridge. What is responsible for this pattern?

Changes in the Earth's magnetic field are recorded in the solidifying magma during seafloor spreading.

Sort the following characteristics by the type of volcano they are associated with.

Cinder cone volcano: flank eruptions, strombolian eruption Shield volcanoes: pillow basalts, fire fountain Stratovolcano: pyroclastic flow, lahars, felsic lava

Sort outcomes of continental collision versus those related to ocean-ocean (oceanic) convergence.

Continental collision - crustal thickening, mountain building oceanic convergence - subduction, volcanism

Contrast continental collision and volcanic island arc formation. Sort properties of each.

Continental collision - involves continental crust Volcanic island arc formation - involves volcanism, involves oceanic crust, involves subduction

Match the geologic activity to the plate boundary where it occurs.

Convergent - deep and shallow earthquakes, recycling old ocean crust, volcanic arcs Divergent - new oceanic crust, shallow earthquakes and volcanic activity Transform - earthquakes but no volcanic activity

Decide which type of plate boundary the following items would most likely be associated with.

Divergent - crustal thinning Convergent - andesitic volcanism, crustal thickening Transform boundary - shear stress

Place Earth's layers in order from highest to lowest density.

Inner core Outer core Mantle Crust

Based on the Narrative Art Video about the formation of the Earth, identify statements that are true of Earth.

It has one moon. It formed from the third protoplanet from the Sun.

Why does magma rise from depth to the surface of the Earth?

It is less dense than the rocks that surround it. The surrounding rock creates pressure that pushes it upward.

What does grain size generally indicate about the cooling of a melt?

Larger crystals indicate the melt cooled gradually.

Which statements are true about lava?

Lava is molten rock that has been erupted onto the surface of the Earth. Lava composition can vary greatly among different types of volcanoes.

Rank each lava type according to the relative distance it can generally travel from a volcano vent before solidifying.

Least distance 1. Felsic 2. Intermed 3. Mafic

Sort the items below into the correct boxes based on characteristics of the lithosphere and asthenosphere.

Lithosphere - mantle and crust, brittle, colder Asthenosphere - mantle only, ductile, warmer

Sort statements as being true of the lithosphere or asthenosphere.

Lithosphere - outermost layer, relatively rigid Asthenosphere - higher density, relatively soft (plastic)

Which of the following statements about lithosphere and asthenosphere is TRUE?

Lithosphere consists of the crust and the upper mantle and behaves like a hard layer that breaks and bends.

What composition of magma is produced by melting at lower temperatures? At higher temperatures?

Lower temp felsic intermed mafic ultramafic

Compare and contrast the melting of water and rock by matching each statement to the appropriate category below.

Melting of water: composition stays the same Melting of rock: partial melting can take place Applies to both: a change of state takes place Applies to neither: the phase change take place at 100C

Place the events in the order they occur between the mid-ocean ridge and deep-ocean trench.

Mid-Oceanic ridge 1. ocean crust created 2. sediment accumulation on oceanic crust 3. ocean crust scraped off plate to form accretionary wedge 4. ocean crust recycled into mantle deep-ocean trench

Identify the following substances as mineral, mineral simulant, or non-mineral.

Mineral: gypsum, corundum, aragonite, graphite. Mineral simulant: hematine, cubic zirconia Non-mineral: menthol, sugar, DNA, glass

If an area having 35km thick crust is thickened by thrusting a 10km thick slab of crust on top, what will happen to the level of the Moho

Moho will move downward by 8km

The boundary separating the crust from the mantle is called

Moho.

Which of the following volcanic areas is part of the Ring of Fire?

Mt. Pinatubo, Philippines

Which of the following headlines from possible news stories relate(s) to Earth Science?

NASA prepares for launch of James Webb telescope, which will give us new insights into outer space EPA under the microscope after 2015 Colorado Gold King Mine spill

During the breakup of the supercontinent Pangea, which of the following continents were the first to separate from eachother?

North America and Africa

Andrija Mohorovičić discovered the crust-mantle boundary, which is now named after him, because he realized that

P-waves were refracted at the boundary.

The geothermal gradient

Rate of increase in temperature with increasing depth in the Earth.

Order the steps in continental rift formation.

Rifting initiates 1. The lithospheric mantle begins to stretch and thin vertically 2. The crust fractures, and faults develop 3. Large fault blocks of crust slide down into the widening rift 4. Magma erupts as lava, creating volcanoes along and near the center of the rift

Why does the line for S-wave velocity disappear in the outer core?

S-waves do not travel through liquids, and the outer core is liquid.

Which of these statements best describes why seismic wave #2 reaches the seismometer before seismic wave #1?

Seismic wave #2 refracted at the crust-mantle boundary due to the increase in density, allowing its velocity to increase.

Select the statements below that correctly describe where Earth's three most abundant elements (iron, oxygen, and silica) are located.

Silica is abundant in the mantle and crust. The majority of iron is located in the core. The majority of oxygen is located in the crust and mantle.

If an area having 35km thick crust is thickened by thrusting a 10km thick slab of crust on top, how will the surface elevation change?

Surface elevation will increase by 2km

Use the Travel Time function of the Interactivity to find the distance between each of your cities (their respective seismometers) and the epicenter of the earthquake. Compare the S-P values with the distance (km) values. Which of the following are correct?

The larger the S-P value is, the farther the seismometer is located from the epicenter. The longer the S- and P-waves travel, the farther apart their wave fronts are in kilometers. The farther the epicenter is, the greater the time difference in the arrival of the P- and S-waves at a seismometer.

Given a spherical magma body with a radius r of 2.2 meters and a cubical magma body with sides s that have a length of 3.5 meters, in which body of magma is the magma likely to cool more quickly (assuming all other factors are held constant)?

The magma will cool more quickly in the cubical magma body.

Which of the following statements about differentiation are true?

The mantle formed as a result of differentiation. The core formed as a result of differentiation.

The image shows an outcrop of basalt that contained numerous gas bubbles (now filled with the light colored minerals). Which of the following factors would be most likely to cause bubbles to be trapped inside of an igneous rock?

The molten rock cooled relatively quickly.

Why is Earth's mantle solid?

The pressure is so high that molecules cannot vibrate enough to form freely moving liquid.

Why are there so many different types of magma?

The source rock from which magmas form may differ. Different magmas may mix to form a new magma.

Observe the map of seafloor ages. Why does the Eastern Pacific have a much wider band of red than the Atlantic Ocean?

The spreading rate in the Pacific is faster than the spreading rate in the Atlantic.

If 50 km thick crust having an average density of 3.0 g/cm3 has a surface elevation of 2.5 km above sea level, what would you predict about the surface elevation for 50 km thick crust with an average density of 2.7 g/cm3 ? Assume the density of the underlying mantle is the same in each case.

The surface elevation would be higher than 2.5km asl

What does this graph demonstrate about the velocity of both waves as they travel away from the earthquake focus?

The velocity of each wave increases with distance from the focus.

Watch the Tsunami Arrival topic of the Tsunami Initiation Animation, and pay close attention to see what happens along the beach just before the wave hits.

The water flows away from the beach, receding offshore toward the mounting wave.

In 79 AD, Mt. Vesuvius erupted, sending out a pyroclastic flow that buried the cities of Pompeii, Herculaneum, Oplontis, and Stabiae. Pompeii is the most well known of these cities. How would history have been different if the magma chemistry in Mt. Vesuvius had been mafic rather than felsic?

There would not have been a pyroclastic flow.

This diagram shows a convergent plate boundary. Which of the following statements is true?

This is an example of ocean-continent convergence; the plate on the right is being subducted.

Categorize processes related to transform boundaries. Sort the following processes those likely to be related to a transform boundary or those likely associated with other boundary types.

Transform boundary - earthquakes Other boundary - divergence, convergence, subduction

Which of the following features protects Earth against high-energy cosmic radiation and very fast-moving solar wind particles?

Van Allen radiation belts

Based on the Narrative Art Video on solar system formation, identify the statements true of volatile materials and refractory materials.

Volatile Materials = hydrogen and helium, melt/vaporize at lower temperatures, freezing yields ices. Refractory materials = freezing yields rocky/metallic solids

How does the elastic-rebound theory explain the occurrence of earthquakes?

When bending rocks fail, stress energy is released in the form of earthquakes.

The earthquake foci pattern east of Australia and just north of New Zealand indicates which tectonic setting?

convergent plate boundary

A Wadati-Benioff zone is

a band of earthquakes along subducting lithosphere in a convergent boundary.

A mineral, as geologists understand the term, is a naturally occurring solid substance with a definable chemical composition and

a fixed crystalline structure.

This video shows a draining event in the lava pond within the Halema'uma'u vent cavity located in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. The lava column exhibited cycles of filling and draining of the vent cavity, with each cycle lasting a few minutes. Based on your observations, what are the likely types of lava flow or features that might be produced at the vent's opening to the ground surface?

a'a' pahoehoe

Which of the following regions makes up the biggest percentage of the Earth's surface?

abyssal plains

south margin of Alaska

active

west margin of south africa

active

Seafloor spreading is driven by volcanic activity that occurs

along mid-ocean ridges.

A seamount chain is

an elongate series of former volcanic islands that poke up from the ocean floor.

The chain of volcanoes along the west coast of South America (the Andean arc) exists because

an oceanic plate is subducting under the western edge of the South American Plate.

Biogenic minerals are minerals produced by living organisms. Two commonly seen biogenic minerals are _____, which is often produced by coral and other invertebrates, and _____, which often makes up the shell material of mollusks such as clams.

aragonite, calcite

The S-P value is a measure of the difference in time between the

arrival of the shear body waves and the compressional body waves. arrival of the secondary waves and the primary waves.

African Plate

both oceanic and continental crust

Australian Plate

both oceanic and continental crust

Nazca plate

both oceanic and continental crust

north american plate

both oceanic and continental crust

The rate of plate motion

can range from 1 to 15 cm per year.

What is the prime characteristic that geologists use to separate minerals into classes?

chemical composition—specifically, the anions in the chemical formula

Based on what you learned in the Narrative Art Video on solar system formation, select the item(s) that may show us what planetesimals looked like inside.

chondritic meteorites

The lithosphere does not

consist of the crust and lower mantle.

When a fault slips and the rock units on either side return to their original shape by generating vibrations, it is called

elastic rebound.

Determine whether the rock is felsic, intermediate, mafic, or ultramafic. (Note the relatively high proportions of grey, white, and pink minerals in the sample.)

felsic

The image shows Mount St. Helens two years after its 1980 eruption. Given the shape of the volcano and presence of a lava dome (source of the steam), what is the most likely composition of the associated magma?

felsic to intermediate

Which type of silicate has the greatest proportion of oxygen atoms shared by pairs of adjacent tetrahedra?

framework silicates

Obsidian is classified as having a __________ texture.

glassy

According to the nebular theory of planet formation, which type of force was responsible for causing particles in the protoplanetary disk to clump and bind together, growing from soot-sized specks into boulder-sized blocks, and eventually into planetesimals?

gravitational

Alfred Wegener's idea of continental drift was rejected by American geologists because

he could not conceive of a valid mechanism that would cause continents to shift positions.

Identify the factors that cause melting and thus the formation of magma.

heat transfer decompression addition of volatiles

Atoms that are heavier than iron are generally produced by

high-energy fusion reactions during the explosion of supernovae.

A moving, glowing, descending cloud of hot ash and rock

is called a pyroclastic flow or nuée ardente.

Why is glass not a mineral?

it does not have a fixed crystalline structure

Marine magnetic anomalies result from seafloor spreading in conjunction with

magnetic polarity reversals.

A tsunami

may be just a broad, gentle swelling out at sea but grows as it approaches shore.

Which tectonic processes are likely to be associated with earthquakes?

movement along plate boundaries formation of ocean basins plate subduction mountain building

The 2010 Haiti earthquake was so destructive because

of poor construction standards that caused many buildings to collapse.

The San Andreas fault is

one of the few transform faults that cut across continental lithosphere.

The Earth's magnetic field is generated by which of the following layers?

outer core

east margin of Japan

passive

north margin of antartica

passive

south margin of Austria

passive

What is the tectonic setting where sediment is accumulating at location A?

passive margin

The contact between lithospheric plates is called a

plate boundary.

Which of the following variables could influence the width of marine magnetic anomalies on the floor of the ocean?

rate at which the plates are moving away from the mid-ocean ridge duration of the magnetic polarity event

Long-term earthquake predictions are based on which of the following?

recurrence intervals seismic belts

The initiation of a tsunami by a stick-slip subduction zone is similar to the motion experienced by which type of fault?

reverse fault

This image shows the Red Sea, which separates northeastern Africa from the Arabian Peninsula. Currently, the Arabian peninsula is moving northeast relative to Africa. Which of the following processes is responsible for the formation of the Red Sea?

rifting followed by seafloor spreading

The silica-oxygen tetrahedra is the building block of which chemical class of minerals?

silicates

What is the stream of charged particles given off from the Sun called?

solar wind