1. Rocks & spheres of the Earth
Science Vocabulary
ACOS 10
Earth Features
Rocks & spheres of the Earth
Rocks and the Rock Cycle

2. The continuous series of changes that rocks go through
Rock cycle
Small pieces of rock
sediment
Sedimentary rock
Rocks that form from sediment such as sand, clay, gravel, and seashells, that settle at the bottom of watery places

3. Rock that forms when melted rock materials from Earth’s mantle cools and hardens
Igneous rock
New rock that forms when existing rock is changed by heat, pressure, or chemical beneath the Earth
metamorphic rock

4. Destructive forces in which pieces of rock are moved by water, wind, or moving ice
erosion
Destructive force such as wind or water that breaks down rocks into smaller pieces
weathering

5. The solid part of the earth: contains the crust, mantle, and core
geosphere
The solid part of the earth: contains the crust, mantle, and core
A mixture of gases that surround the Earth; the blanket of air surrounding the Earth
atmosphere

6. The very thin layer of atmosphere; first to be struck by sunlight
Coldest layer of atmosphere; lies above the stratosphere
Cold, dry layer of atmosphere; contains most of the ozone layer that protects us from radiation
The atmosphere closest to the Earth where weather occurs

7. A map that shows the shape of surface features and their elevations
Topographic map

8. Lines on a topographic map that show areas with the same elevation
contour
lines

9. The idea that giant plates of rock are moving slowly across Earth’s surface
plate tectonics

10. Area where Earth’s solid upper mantle and crust combine to form a rigid (hard) shell
lithosphere

11. The thick layer of Earth’s structure just below Earth’s crust
mantle

12. The thinner, uppermost layer of the Earth; rocky outer layer of Earth that makes up the continents and the ocean floor
crust

13. Earth’s most innermost structure; the center
core