Earth Structure Definitions

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Undergraduate Geology - Part 1 (Earth Structure) Flashcards on Earth Structure Definitions, created by siobhan.quirk on 08/05/2013.
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Flashcards by siobhan.quirk, updated more than 1 year ago
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Created by siobhan.quirk over 11 years ago
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Question Answer
Define the Solar System is the Sun, planets, their moons, comets and asteroids
Define the Sun a star composed of hydrogen and helium. It is the largest object in the Solar Sysem and contains more then 99.8% of the total mass
Define a planet a sizable object orbiting the sun
Define moon a natural satellite orbiting a planet
Define asteroids rocky objects which failed to form a planet
Define meteorites fragments of rock which fall to Earth from space
Define a comet composed of ice and dust. The outer layer melts into water vapour as it gets closer to the Sun.
Define rheid a solid material that flows
Define peridotite an ultramafic igneous rock composed of the minerals olivine and pyroxene with a coarse crystal size
Define olivine a dense, ferromagnesian silicate mineral
Define partial melting where a proportion of the minerals will have a lower melting point, allowing them to melt while the rest remains solid
Define kimberlites fine-grained, ultramafic igneous rocks
Define xenolith fragment of foreign rock included in an igenous rock which has come from a different source
Define ophiolite a section of oceanic crust and upper mantle broken off and attached to the edge of a continent during plate movement
Define palaeomagnetism ancient magnetism preserved in rocks
Define magnetic anomaly a value for the Earth's magnetic field, which is different from the expected value
Define magnetic inclination is the angle of dip of the lines of a magnetic field. It is the angle with the horizontal made by a compass needle.
Define remnant magnetism magnetism shown by rocks due to the alignment of their magnetic minerals according to the Earth's magnetic field at the time of their formation
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