Quiz 8

volcano

A spot where magma rises to the surface can be seen as a

slow motions within the mantle of the Earth move large sections of the crust around

According to the theory of plate tectonics,

measuring how seismic waves are transmitted through the Earth

An important way that scientists have been able to study the interior of the Earth is by:

the melting of many glaciers, a rise in sea levels, and more flooding of towns near the coasts of the continents

An increase in the Earth's temperature by several degrees Celsius would result in:

on the boundaries of continental plates, where they meet other plates

Earthquake producing faults are much more likely to be found

circulating liquid metals in the core set up a large (measurable) magnetic field

If no one has ever visited the core of the Earth, how do we know that it is made of metals?

the troposphere

In which region of the Earth's atmosphere have you spent most of your life?

wind, water, and ice flow over the Earth's mountains and erode them

Mountains on Earth often have sharp peaks and edges to them, while mountains on the Moon look smooth and kind of dull in comparison. What gives the Earth's mountains their dramatically sharp shapes?

absorbs ultra-violet light, preventing much of it from reaching the surface

One way in which the ozone layer is useful for life forms on the Earth's surface is that it

rift zones

Regions where the continents or the sea floor are pulling apart are called

rise into the atmosphere and destroy ozone

Scientists have been concerned about a set of industrial chemicals called CFC's (chlorofluorocarbons) because they:

the early Earth must have been so hot it was like a liquid and heavier things sank to the middle

Scientists now understand that the Earth consists of layers, with the densest materials in the core. What allowed the differentiation of the Earth's layers to happen?

the active geology and weather on Earth destroy traces of impacts over millions of years

The Moon is heavily cratered, but the Earth which "lives next door" is NOT. Why?

carbon dioxide (and other gases) in the atmosphere cause a greenhouse effect

The average temperature on planet Earth is higher than you would expect just from the heating of sunlight alone. What is the explanation for this?

mantle

The largest part (by volume) of the Earth is its

the slow upward flow of warmer material and downward flow of cooler material

The process of convection involves

slow changes in the tilt of our planet's axis of rotation

Today, scientists believe that the main reason the Earth has had periodic ice ages is:

there was little if any free oxygen early on there was no ozone layer early on there was probably more carbon dioxide early on than there is today Correct Answer **all of the above

Which of the following is a way we believe that the early atmosphere of the Earth differed from the atmosphere we have today?

its mass is a substantial part of the mass of the Earth

Which of the following points about our planet's atmosphere is FALSE?

its shape and size are the same on the sides facing toward and away from the Sun

Which of the following statements about the Earth's magnetosphere is FALSE?