Unit 5 Geology Lessons 1-5

Front

What is a catastrophe?

Back

A terrible, sudden event

Front

Erupt

Back

To send out rock, lava, and ash in a sudden explosion

Front

Geologist

Back

A scientist who studies the makeup of the earth and the forces and processes that shape and change it

Front

What is continental drift?

Back

A process in which continents slowly move over time on the surface of the earth

Front

Dense

Back

Thick or heavy

Front

What is a seismic wave?

Back

A surge of energy traveling out from an earthquake’s source through the earth

Front

Basalt

Back

Heavy, dense rock formed from cooled, hardened lava

Front

What is an ocean trench?

Back

A narrow, extremely deep valley formed when the seafloor dips down as one tectonic plate slides under another

Front

What is plate tectonics?

Back

A theory that Earth’s crust and the solid top part of the mantle are broken up into sections that fit together but move against each other

Front

What is a tsunami?

Back

A gigantic wave of seawater caused by an earthquake in oceanic crust