Science

• Pangaea


  Single landmass or supercontinent
• Panthalassa


  Vast sea or super ocean
• Tectonic


  Term derived from a Greek word tekton which means "carpenter" or "builder"
• Lithosphere


  • Massive, irregular slab of solid rocks that envelope the surface of Earth
• Contraction theory


  As the Earth cooled after its formation, its surface contracted and wrinkled, with these wrinkles being the mountain ranges on Earth's surface
• Continental Drift Theory


  Proposed by Alfred Wegener in 1915, explained that about 1, 100 million years ago, there was a super continent named Rodinia, which predated Pangaea
• Seafloor Spreading Theory


  Proposed by Harry Hess in 1960s, says that the seafloors or ocean floors, not the continents move and carry the continents along
• Mantle Convection Theory


  • Warm less dense material rises, cooler more dense material sinks, creating a cycle
• Slab Pull Theory


  Gravity and the plates themselves are responsible for the plate tectonics through SUBDUCTION process
• Divergent Plate Boundary


  Two plates move away from each other, creating a gap or rift between them
• Convergent Plate Boundary


  Two plates slide toward each other and form either a subduction zone or an orogenic belt
• Transform Plate Boundary


  The plates slide against one another in opposite directions, resulting in earthquakes
• Wegener's continental drift theory was regarded as improbable and ridiculous until the discovery of magnetic reversals in the 1950s
• Paleontological Evidence


  • Fossils of Lystrosaurus and Cynognathus
  • Identical plant fossils found in coal beds of Europe and US
• Evidence from Glaciation


  • Till deposits indicating erratic glacier motion
  • Glaciation in the southern hemisphere
• Evidence from structure and rock type

  • Coastlines of continents fitting together
  • Rift Valleys of Africa
• Evidence from Paleoclimates


  • Distribution of specific rock types indicating past climatic zones
• Lithosphere


  • Outer solid part of the planet includes Earth's crust and the underlying cool, dense and rigid upper part of the upper mantle
• Asthenosphere


  • High viscous, hotter, and ductile region of the upper mantle involved in plate tectonic movement and isostatic adjustment
• Layers of the Earth

  • Crust
  • Mantle
  • Core
• Layers of the Atmosphere

  • Troposphere
  • Stratosphere
  • Mesosphere
  • Thermosphere
  • Exosphere
• Biosphere


  Sphere that encompasses all life forms on earth
• Aeolian Landforms


  • Formed by the chemical and mechanical action of the wind
• Aeolian Landforms: Erosional


  • Mesas
  • Buttes
  • Canyons
  • Gorge
• Mountainous and Glacial Landforms


  • Exhibit slopes, summit area, and local relief, rise higher than the rest of their surroundings
• Volcano


  Cone-shaped hill or mountain formed by the extrusion of lave or ejection of rock fragments from a vent
• Theories of Volcanism


  1. Plate tectonics

  2. Natural radioactivity in rocks

  3. Convection currents
• Features of a Volcano

  • Cone
• Vertical and horizontal movement of the crust

  • Typically produces the mountains
• Erosion


  Physical removal of rock or wearing down of landmasses
• Volcanism


  Phenomenon related to the various processes associated with the surface discharge of magma or hot water and steams
• Volcano


  Cone-shaped hill or mountain formed by the extrusion of lava or ejection of rock fragments from a vent
• Vulcano


  An island off Sicily named after the Roman god of fire, VULCAN
• There are 859 active volcanoes in the world, more than 75% of them are located in the Circle of Fire
• Plate tectonics


  Scientific study of the origin and arrangement of the broad structural features of the Earth's surface known as the LITHOSPHERE
• Convection currents are formed and caused the plates in the crust to move
• Volcanoes are formed when hot materials such as magma from the below rises and leaks into the crust
• Features of a Volcano

  • Cone
  • Fissure
  • Conduit
  • Vent
  • Crater
  • Flank
  • Summit
  • Magma chamber or reservoir
• Inactive or dormant volcano

  The volcano is declared inactive or dormant if the last traces of volcanic heat disappear and if it has not erupted in 2000 years
• Some extinct volcanoes in the Philippines

  • Mt. Butay
  • Mount Guinsiliban on Camiguin Island