Essential Science Vocabulary: Earth Science: Geologic Features and Activity

Whether you want to brush up on biology, study space science, or prep for a physics test, this collection of science vocabulary is for you! Our lists cover essential terms and concepts from all major scientific disciplines.
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. aftershock
    a tremor following the main tremor of an earthquake
  2. canyon
    a ravine formed by a river in an area with little rainfall
  3. continent
    one of the large landmasses of the earth
  4. continental drift
    the gradual movement of very large land masses
  5. desert
    arid land with little or no vegetation
  6. dormant
    not erupting but not extinct
  7. earthquake
    vibration from underground movement along a fault plane
  8. epicenter
    a point on the Earth's surface directly above an earthquake
  9. eruption
    the sudden occurrence of a violent discharge
  10. fault
    a crack in the earth's crust resulting from displacement
  11. geyser
    a spring that discharges hot water and steam
  12. glacier
    a slowly moving mass of ice
  13. iceberg
    a large frozen mass floating at sea
  14. lava
    rock that in its molten form issues from volcanos
  15. magma
    molten rock in the earth's crust
  16. molten
    reduced to liquid form by heating
  17. plate
    a rigid layer of the Earth's crust
  18. plate tectonics
    the movement or study of the movement of Earth's crust
  19. plateau
    a relatively flat raised area of land
  20. ridge
    a long narrow natural elevation or striation
  21. rift
    a narrow fissure in rock
  22. savanna
    a flat grassland in tropical or subtropical regions
  23. seismic
    subject to or caused by an earthquake or earth vibration
  24. seismograph
    an instrument for measuring movements of the ground
  25. subduction
    movement of the edge of one tectonic plate under another
  26. tundra
    a vast treeless plain where subsoil is permanently frozen
  27. volcano
    a fissure in the earth's crust through which gases erupt
  28. watershed
    the geographical area drained by a river and its tributaries
Created on Wed Aug 04 13:27:20 EDT 2021 (updated Wed Aug 04 14:49:20 EDT 2021)

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