AP Environmental Science Earthquakes, Volcanoes, and Other Disasters

Earthquakes, Volcanoes, and Other Disasters

• Important terms related to the geologic time scale include: eon, era, period, epoch, stage, strata, and superposition
• The Earth is made up of the biosphere, hydrosphere, and the internal structure. The internal structure is made of the crust, mantle, and core. The crust is partially oceanic and partially continental
• Moho is the boundary between Earth’s crust and the mantle, the mantle is most of the Earth’s mass, and the core is part molten and part solid
• Plate tectonics, continental drift theory, and seafloor spreading are all important to consider in relation to the Earth’s crust
• Boundaries between the tectonic plates include: transform, divergent, and convergent
• Earthquakes occur when there is abrupt movement along a fault line, along tectonic plate boundary zones, or along mid-oceanic ridges. The Richter scale measures the relative magnitude of the movement and seismograms and seismographs pertain to the scale
• Hurricanes begin over warm oceans in areas where trade winds converge. A thunderstorm can become a hurricane when cyclonic circulation comes into play
• Tornadoes are swirling masses of air over land. They are most common in “tornado alley” and from the months of April through July
• Volcanoes spew molten rock (lava) from out of the mantle, and they usually occur at subduction zones or mid-oceanic ridges. The major types are cinder, shield, and composite
• Parts of a volcano include ash cloud, bomb, throat, branch pipe, fumarole, vent, magma chamber
• Erosion is the movement of weathered rock/soil from one place to another. Factors affecting this include natural phenomena (wind, water, gravity) and human-influenced causes
• Pesticides have positive and negative effects. Types include: antimicrobials, attractants, insecticides, and ovicides. Alternatives include: pest-resistant crops, crop rotation, and pheromone use