Geology Quiz

Earth's Geologic Processes and Phenomena

• Rocks store energy due to pressure changes and the Earth's surface stores energy from contraction and expansion as the crust heats and cools
• When stress builds up in rocks, they eventually fracture, releasing energy in waves that cause ground shaking
• Earthquakes provide information about the Earth's interior, and seismologists use earthquake waves to deduce the structure of the Earth's interior
• Scientists have developed a 5-layer model of the Earth's interior using information from earthquake waves, including a solid inner core, liquid outer core, liquid mantle, taffy-like upper layer, and outer crust
• Tsunamis can be triggered by earthquakes, underwater landslides, or volcanic eruptions, and may occur as a result of fault line movement underwater
• Tsunamis move fast in open ocean but slow down and pile up as they reach the shoreline, causing massive destruction
• Volcanoes are formed by magma oozing out of the ground, explosive eruptions, or hot spots like mantle plumes, examples being Yellowstone National Park and the Hawaiian islands
• Hot spots like Yellowstone and Hawaii are relatively stationary, causing chains of islands to form as plates move over them
• The types of lava coming out of volcanoes give scientists clues about the Earth's interior, and the Hawaiian islands were formed by a mantle plume depositing volcanic lava
• Weathering is the wearing away of rock by natural agents like wind and water, and deposition can be seen in drainage channels formed by water running off from heavy rainfall
• Earth's surface processes like weathering and deposition are evident in Hawaii and play a role in shaping the landscape
• Earth's crust stores energy due to pressure changes and surface contraction and expansion, eventually leading to fracturing and the release of energy in waves that cause ground shaking