EARTH’S PHYSICAL PROCESSES

LITHOSPHERE Earth’s CRUST & SOLID UPPER MANTLE

MINING & DRILLING a- People DRILL into the LITHOSPHERE for WATER & PETROLEUM (oil & gas) b- People MINE into the Lithosphere for COAL & MINERALS

The HEATING and COOLING of Earth’s liquid MANTLE is called CONVECTION, and is the main force that causes TECTONIC PLATES to shift and move.

1) COMPREHENSION QUESTION How does convection help cause the movement of tectonic plates?

PLATE TECTONICS TECTONIC PLATES are roughly 30 enormous pieces of the Earth’s CRUST that FLOAT on the MANTLE

2) CONTINETAL DRIFT

COMPREHENSION QUESTION If you took a hardboiled egg and dropped it, you would see its shell split into several pieces. How would those pieces of eggshell be same as tectonic plate? How would they be different?

FAULT LINES TECTONIC PLATES GRIND EARTHQUAKES are where TECTONIC PLATES GRIND past each other - they are the most common places for EARTHQUAKES

VOLCANOES a-SUBDUCTION ZONES UNDER a- form in SUBDUCTION ZONES where one plate dives UNDER the other b-ERRUPTIONS PRESSUREMAGMA CRUSTMANTLE b-Volcanic ERRUPTIONS are triggered by the PRESSURE of MAGMA beneath the Earth’s CRUST in the MANTLE.

MOUNTAIN RANGES CONVERGENT COLLISION causes MOUNTAIN RANGES to FORM and RISE when one PLATE CRASHES into another

RIFT VALLEYS & OCEAN TRENCHES DIVERGENCE RIFT VALLEYS & OCEAN TRENCHES are formed when tectonic plates spread apart, called DIVERGENCE.

3)Tectonic Plates Constantly Move RIDGE RIFT/TRENCHNONE (EARTHQUAKES) 4 One Plate Sinks Beneath Another (ocean) Subduction VOLCANO 5 One Sinks Beneath Another (land) Continents Collison MOUNTAINS 1 23

*4) TSUNAMI SERIES WAVES, OCEAN DISPLACES are a SERIES of enormous WAVES, caused when there’s an EARTHQUAKE under the OCEAN that DISPLACES large amounts of water Tsunami cause massive destruction – recent examples include the 2004 Indonesian & 2011 Japanese Tsunami

WEATHERING, EROSION, SOIL DEPOSITS & DIRT

7) WEATHERING a. breaking rock into smaller pieces by WEARING it down rock or DISSOLVING it b. Contributes to making SOIL

8) Types of Weathering MECHANICAL = wearing away by wind, water and ice CHEMICAL = disintegration by chemical reactions, such as acid rain

9) EROSION a. MOVEMENT of rock, sand and soil from one place to another soil from one place to another b. Carried by WIND, WATER, & glaciers

a. VALLEYS b. CANYONS c. BEACHES d. DESERTIFICATION *10) Landforms/Effects of EROSION

*11) Landforms/Effects of SOIL DEPOSITS a. BEACHES b. DELTAS c. SAND BARS d. ALLUVIAL FAN

COMPREHENSION QUESTION Give an example of weathering, erosion or deposition you’ve seen in our area. Sketch a picture of what’s happening there.

SOIL BUILDING Depending on the MINERAL content and size of the rock, different soil textures are created. Depending on the MINERAL content and size of the rock, different soil textures are created.

*12) FERTILE SOIL WEATHERED ROCK collects after its eroded and mixes with DECAYING PLANTS & DECAYING ANIMALS, MANURE, FUNGI, BACTERIA and WATER to create FERTILE SOIL. Although the MINERAL content of the rock is important, TOP SOIL that is good for farming mostly consists of DECAYING plant & animal matter.