Earth Science Vocabulary 2
Terms
undefined, object
copy deck
- inertia
- tendency of a moving body to remain in motion or a stationary body to remain at rest until an outside force acts on it.
- speed
- the act or state of moving swiftly
- velocity
- the rate of change of position along a straight line with respect to time
- acceleration
- the rate of change of velocity with respect to time; also : change in velocity
- force
- : strength or energy put forth : active power
- gravity
- the force of attraction between all matter and the universe
- chemical bond
- force that holds together the atoms that make up a compound
- compound
- two or more atoms that have been chemically combined
- electron
- subatomic particle with a negative electrical charge
- electron cloud
- region of space around the nucleus of an atom in which electrons may be found
- energy level
- arrangement of electrons within the electron cloud of an atom
- gas
- physical form of matter that does not have a definate volume or shape
- isotope
- atom of an element that has the same atomic number but different atomic mass of another atom of that element
- liquid
- physical form of matter with a definate volume but no definate shape
- mass number
- sum of the numbers of protons and neutrons in an atom
- neutron
- subatomic particle with no electrical charge
- nucleus
- region in the center of an atom that contains the protons and neutrons
- solid
- physical form of matter with a definate shape and volume
- hypothesis
- possible explanation of a problem that is based on facts
- observation
- act of using the senses to gather information
- scientific law
- rule that correctly describes a natural phenomenom
- scientific methods
- organized, logical approaches to scientific research
- theory
- hypothesis or set of hypotheses supported by the results of the experimentation and observation
- variable
- factor in an experiment that can be changed
- aphelion
- point in the orbit of a planet at which the planet is farthest from the sun
- autumnal equinox
- begining of the fall season
- daylight savings time
- system in which clocks are set one hour ahead of standard time from April to October
- international date line
- line running from north to south through the Pacific Ocean where the date changes from one day to the next.
- perihelion
- point in the orbit of a planet at which it is closest to the sun
- revolution
- movement of a planet around the sun
- rotation
- spinning of a planet on its axis
- seismic wave
- vibration that travels through the earth
- standard time zone
- one of 24 regions of the earth in which noon is set as the time when the sun is highest over the center of the region
- vernal equinox
- the begining of spring
- winter solstice
- the begining of winter
- contour line
- line on a map connecting points with the same elevation
- elevation
- height above sea level
- great circle
- any circle that divides the globe in half
- latitude
- angular distance north or south of the equator
- legend
- list of map symbols and their meanings
- longitude
- angular distance east or west of the prime meridian
- meridian
- semicircle on the earth that runs from pole to pole
- parallel
- any circle that runs east and west around the earth parallel to the equator
- Prime Meridian
- the meridian that pass through Greenwich, England designated as O degrees
- scale
- relationship between distance shown on a map and actual distance