EARTH
How does it work? by Dalton A.
What evidence is there that there are plates that move?
These plates are are basically lego pieces of Earth. Alfred Wegener was the first person to suggest this, and including the continental drift theory. Scientist call them tectonic plates, and they come in two ways, Land and oceanic.. They move from convection currents in the mantle, which moves the plates into, away from, or next to each other. Scientist call these movements normal faults, reverse faults, and strike slip faults.. The three boundaries, divergent, convergent, and transform are what scientist call when 2 plates converge, separate, or just go past each other.
A mountain
This mountain was caused by convection currents, which caused the two plates to come together forming it. The currents can cause huge mountains, deep valley, or a long, deep line.
A tsunami
This tsunami can change the Earth's surface by destroying citys, forests, and more.
Volcanic eruption
A volcanic eruption can add more land to a mountain, build an island, and bring in fertile soil for plants to start a forest or for farmer.
Erosion, erosion, erosion!
What is erosion?
Erosion is when a natural force breaks down rock into sediments. There are three types of erosion. Wind erosion, water erosion, and ice erosion. Wind erosion is when the wind, over millions of years, slowly breaks apart rocks into sediments. Water erosion is when rock slowly breaks down from water, and is carried away in a river. This erosion is usually the one that causes the most change. Ice erosion is when water freezes inside a rock, causing the rock to separate enough to fit in the ice. After a long time, the rock breaks. It's the slowest version of erosion.
Fossils
Superposition
Superposition it when two waves come in contact with each other. They can either destructively interfere, or just interfere. After words, that just continue on their path.
How fossils can tell the history of Earth.
Fossils can tell the history of earth in their rock layers. The further down a fossil is, the further back in time it died. Usually, they tell us what the animal ate, and how it died.
Not all fossils are the same.
Some fossils are animals trapped in time in tree sap. Others are cast's of the animals bones. Some are prints of a plant.
Rock and roll with minerals!
Igneous rocks
Igneous rocks are formed from volcanic eruptions, in which lava, or molten rock, rushes out of Earth. Te lava cools, forming the Igneous types of rocks.
Metamorphic rock
Metamorphic rocks form from Igneous or sedimentary rocks that are applied with heat and pressure.
Sedimentary rocks
Sedimentary rocks form from sediments, the outcome of rocks with erosion. The sediments then get pressurized, forming a rock.
A rock can form many ways, and start many ways. Magma or lava can come out of the Earth. When cooled, this forms Igneous rocks. Erosion will turn this rock into sediments, which after it's piled for a long time, will form sedimentary rocks. These rocks, when pressurized more, but with heat, will form metamorphic rocks. The metamorphic rocks will then heat, and turn into magma, restarting the cycle. At any time, the sedimentary rocks can become Igneous instead, or the metamorphic can re-become sedimentary.
Minerals: Which is which? But, how did they form?
Minerals can form from two ways. They can form from magma and lava, or from solutions. When magma or lava hardens, these can form crystals, forming minerals. In a solution, elements and compounds that are dissolved in water leave a solution. Crystalization occurs. You can identify a mineral by it's colour, streak, luster, density, and hardness.
What I enjoyed during this unit.
I enjoyed learning about how the earth actually works. Also, I enjoyed on how to identify minerals, since the next day I found a mineral, and found out it was quartz.