Earth Science Pointers PDF

**EARTH SCIENCE POINTERS** **Fossil Fuels-** are formed from living plants and animals that existed 500 million years ago **Hydrocarbons-** can be form of solid (coal), liquid (petroleum or crude), gas ( natural gas) Energy source can be classified into two types: **Nonrenewable energy sources-*...

**EARTH SCIENCE POINTERS** **Fossil Fuels-** are formed from living plants and animals that existed 500 million years ago **Hydrocarbons-** can be form of solid (coal), liquid (petroleum or crude), gas ( natural gas) Energy source can be classified into two types: **Nonrenewable energy sources-** it takes a long time for them to be replenished - **Coal** -- **Peat**( first stage in the development of coal and is soft substance made of decayed plants fiber) - **Oil**- a liquid fossil fuel, which is commonly called petroleum oil or crude oil - **Natural gas-** is composed of hydrocarbons called methane **Renewable resources-** resources that can be replenished naturally over a relative short period of time - **Sun-** converted into heat that is used to produce electricity - **Wind** -- windmills are used to generate electricity as the kinetic energy of the wind turns the turbines to create electricity - **Geothermal energy-** the heat comes from the sub-surface of the earth - **Hydrothermal energy-** volumes of water from waterfall or dam have kenetic enery - **Dendrothermal energy-** biomass is the total amount of living things in the environment , it can process to make biofuel - **Nuclear energy-** an alternative source of energy - **Agricultural Wastes-** are all leftovers after harvest is completed - **Mining waste-** are the materials that has been brought up from the Earth in the process of extracting coal, metal ore or some other mineral resources - **Industrial waste-** are generated after industrial and manufacturing processes - **Commercial waste**- produced in schools, shops,markets, malls and offices - **Domestic waste**-generated during household activities like cooking and cleaning - **Biomedical wastes-**generated in hospitals and clinics - **Municipal waste**- are waste from households, offices,schools, market and other public places - **Solid waste-** commonly known as trash or garbage that is produced in our house or other places. - **RA 9003-** Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 - **Liquid Waste-** includes water waste from our homes, offices and commercial - **Gaseous waste-** includes gases that is being released in factories during processes - **Biodegradable waste-** also known as organic waste. It can decomposed by bacteria and other other organism - **Non- biodegradable waste-** cannot be decomposed by bacteria and other organism - **Non-hazardous waste-** do not bring harm to the environment or to life - **Hazardous waste-** are those that bring potential harm to life or environment - **E-wastes-** known as waste electrical and electronic equipment - **Waste Management-** the collection transportation and disposal of garbage , sewage and other waste products - **Municipal solid Waste-** commonly known as garbage or trash - **Waste Characterization-** a process of finding out the amount of garbage disposed from the source 1. **Continental Margins-** submerged outer edge of the continent where continental crust transitions into oceanic crust 2. **Abyssal plains and abyssal hills- abyssal plain** is an extremely flat, sediment, covered stretches of the ocean floor, interrupted by occasional volcanoes, mostly extinct called seamount 3. **Mid-ocean ridge**- a submarine mountain chain that winds for more than 65,000 km round the globe. It has a central rift valley and rugged topography on its flanks 4. **Deep-ocean trenches-** narrow, depressions on the seafloor many of which are adjacent of island with active volcanoes, deepest features of the seafloor 5. **Seamounts-** submerged volcanoes **Volcanic islands-** rise above the ocean surface This features may be isolated or found in clusters or chains The following are observations or evidence that led to the proposal of seafloor spreading by Hess A. **Distribution of seafloor topographic features**- distribution of mid-ocean ridges and depth of the seafloor B. **Sediment thickness-** fine layer of sediment covering much of the seafloor becomes progressively thicker away from mid-ocean axis C. **Composition of oceanic crust-** consists primarily of basalt D. **High heat flow along mid-ocean ridge axes-** led scientists to speculate that magma is rising into the crust just below the mid ocean ridge axis E. **Distribution of submarine earthquakes-** earthquakes do not occur randomly but define distinct belt **Magnetometer-** use to measure the magnetic field of rocks F. Magnetic poles are fixed, and it is the continents that are moving **PLATE TECTONICS** **Plates**- large, rigid pieces **Asthenosphere-** a top of underlying rock layer The theory of plate tectonics states that the lithosphere is not continuous layer but consists of several irregularly shaped pieces called tectonic plates each moving as a unit **Wilson Cycle-** a cyclic process of rifting in the continents that formed ocean basins and subduction that resulted to the destruction of the older basin **MAIN PHASES OF THE WILSON CYCLE** - Rifting within the supercontinents leads to the opening of new ocean basin and formation of oceanic crust - Passive margin cools and sinks, and sedimental accumulates along the edge - Convergence begins, initiating subduction and eventual ocean closure - Continent-continent collision forms the next supercontinent **Ocean basin**- defined as that part of the seafloor deeper than 2000 m (6000 ft) **DATING THE EARTH** **Relative Age or Dating**- used to arrange geological events and the rocks they leave behind, in a sequence. The method of reading the order is called **stratigraphy** (layers of rock are called **strata)** **Stratification**-is a layered structure formed by the deposition of sedimentary rocks Basic Principles considered geological relating to Earth's history: 1. **Principle of superposition** -- states that in an undisturbed sequence of stratified rocks, each layer is older than the one above it and younger than the one below 2. **Principle of original horizontally-**states that sediments that are deposited in flat layers 3. **Principle of cross-**cutting relationships-states that when a fault or a dike- a slab of rock that cuts through another rock-or when magma intrudes to the rock, that fault or magma intrusions is younger than the rock 4. **Principle of inclusion-** states that a rock mass that contains pieces of rock, called inclusions, is younger than the other rock masses 5. **Principle of fossil successions** (also known as the law of faunal succession)-states that organism evolve in definite order, that species evolve and become extinct, never to re-evolve 6. **Principle of unconformities-** states that rock layers that formed without interruption **Absolute Dating-** commonly used for methods of determining numerical ages of rocks. Also known as isotopic dating or radiometric dating **Radiocarbon Dating-** use of the decay of carbon-14, an isotope of carbon, to date events in the past