Physical Geology

Chapter 17
Earth’s Interior
Notes

Slide 2: Earth’s Interior is Important

It affects what happens at _________________________where we live. It is difficult for

us to see __________________________ inside Earth. We only study Earth’s interior
through _____________________________________. We can’t go directly to the
____________________________________ to see what’s there.

Slide 3: How do we know what’s inside Earth?

How do we know Earth is not hollow?

1)We can learn about Earth’s interior by ________________ and deep

____________________________. However, the deepest mines are _____________
down and the deepest wells are ______________________________.

Slide 4:

2) ___________________________, rocks brought up from below and incorporated in

lava from volcanoes. These give us a clue as to what is __________________________.

Slide 5:
3)______________________, pieces of rock from space that fall to Earth. They originate
from the __________________________. Possibly pieces of a former planet or a
_______________________________. Two types: __________________________ and
__________________________________. See box 17.3 page 423.
Slide 6:
4) Geophysics is the study of mechanical systems in Earth.
Major areas of study include:
a)______________________________
b)______________________________
c)______________________________
d) ______________________________

Earth’s Interior Notes 1

Slide 7: Seismic Studies
Geologist learn about Earth’s interior by studying _____________________________
from major _________________________ and ______________________________.
It is a similar idea to using ________________________________ to see the inside of
our bodies. _________________________________ have the ability to travel all the
way through the ___________________________.

Slide 8: Seismic Studies

Seismic ______________________ and seismic __________________________ are
both used to study the earth.
_______________________________ is the way waves bounce off rock boundaries
inside the earth.
________________________________ is the way waves bend as they pass through
layers of different densities.

Slide 9: Wave Travel Possiblities

A.
Seismic waves would travel ___________________
a hypothetical planet ________________________
properties along ____________________________
and at ________________________________.

B. Wave _____________________ through a planet

where velocity ___________________ with depth.

C.
A few of the many possible ____________ that
seismic rays take_________________ Earth. This
shows there are different structures inside Earth.

Earth’s Interior Notes 2

Slide 10: Seismic Reflection

Scientists can measure the _____________ it takes for __________________________

seismic waves to reach a __________________________. From these data they can
determine ______________________________________ in Earth.

Slide 11: Seismic Refraction

Waves ______________________ as they travel through Earth. They

_______________________ or ___________________ as they enter or leave layers of
different__________________________. As ______________________________
changes, the waves bend. Waves travel _______________________ through more
______________________ materials and _____________________ through less
___________________ materials. They __________________________ one way or
another depending on whether they _________________________ up or
________________down.

Slide 12: Seismic Refraction 1

_______________________ seismic waves in the lower velocity layer

(________________________) reach the first two seismic stations before seismic waves
that travel through the________________________________. However, . . .

Slide 13: Seismic Refraction 2

. . . beyond _________________________, the first waves received passed through the

___________________, which is a zone of _____________________. These differences
in travel times tell us Earth’s interior has___________________________.

Slide 14: Earth’s Interior Has Three Major Subdivisions

_____________________________ is very thin outer layer of the earth

_______________________________is the thick “middle” shell of rock beneath the
crust.
___________________ is the center of the earth.

Earth’s Interior Notes 3

Draw and label Earth’s interior: layers, thicknesses, composition, densities.

Slide 15
Name the two types of crust:

Slide16: Continental Crust

____________________________ crust is the crust that makes up the continents for the
most part. This crust is primarily “____________________________”.It is made chiefly
of the minerals that make up ____________________________. The term
“____________________________” is often used to describe the composition. (Silicon
and aluminum). ____________________________l crust consists chiefly of granite,
gneiss, and schist with a layer of ____________________________ rock on top. It
ranges in thickness from ____________________________ km. Average thickness is 30
to ____________________________ km. It is thickest under the
____________________________. ____________________________travel at an
average rate of 6 km/s. They go faster in the base of the crust due
____________________________. Average density of the continental crust is that of
____________________________, 2.7g/mL

Slide 17: Oceanic Crust

____________________________crust is primarily the rock that makes up the ocean

basins. It’s mainly ____________________________ on top grading to
____________________________ with depth. ____________________________is a
term used to describe this rock: (silicon and magnesium). Average thickness is

Earth’s Interior Notes 4

____________________________Km. Average seismic wave velocity is
____________________________ km/s. Average density is 3.0 g/mL.

Slide 18: The Moho

A boundary separates the crust from the ____________________________. This
boundary is called the
________________________________________________________. (We’ll call it the
____________________________) At the Moho seimic velocities
____________________________ greatly. (Fig. 17.6)
Slide 19: THE MANTLE
The mantle is believed to be made of ____________________________for the most part.
This is based on the velocities of seismic waves through the mantle ( 8km/s).

The rock is believed to be ____________________________. (Fe, Mg, and lack

feldspars). The uppermost rigid part of the mantle, combined with the crust, create a
layer called the ____________________________. The plates are made of
____________________________. The ____________________________ is 70 to 125
km thick under the oceans, and up to 250 km??? under the continents.

Slide 20: Mantle Continued

Below the lithosphere is a zone in the mantle where seismic waves
____________________________. This low velocity zone is called the
____________________________. Many think this is the zone where rocks are near
____________________________ or partially melted (like slush).
The ____________________________ may be: 1)the source of much
____________________________ and 2) a zone where
____________________________ flow of the mantle allows the rigid
____________________________ plates to move. The

Earth’s Interior Notes 5

____________________________ is about 200 km deep. 670 km is considered by some
to be the ____________________________ between the upper and lower mantle. There
are no ____________________________ below 670 km. (Figure 17.7)

Slide 21: THE CORE

There is evidence for a third major subdivision of Earth’s interior. Again seismic
data are our eyes.

It has been found that there is a region,

between ____________________________
degrees from the epicenter, in which no
____________________________ are
recorded. This area is called
____________________________. This is
explained by
____________________________
refraction at the core boundary. (See Figure
17.8) ____________________________
causes waves to bend and creates a
“shadow”.

Slide 22: Core Continued

There is also an ____________________________ shadow zone. This is a region where
no ____________________________are detected. (Fig. 17.9) It begins at 103 degrees
from the epicenter and
7
extends
____________________________
the world from there. It is caused
because
____________________________
are not transmitted through the
____________________________
core. This suggests that the
____________________________
part of the core is probably
____________________________.

Earth’s Interior Notes 6

Slide 23: More Core
We see, therefore, that the core has ____________________________ layers: a liquid
____________________________and a solid ____________________________. The
core is believed to be made of ____________________________with oxygen, silicon,
and sulfur. ____________________________ range from about 10 to 13 g/mL

We believe ________________________________________________________move
in the mantle as well as in the____________________________. The two layers seem to
stay separated due to ____________________________ differences.

Slide 24: ISOSTASY

______________________is the balance of adjacent blocks of crust floating on the upper
mantle.
We can consider the crust as “______________________” on the mantle because of
density differences. Fig. 17.11 shows how a block of wood will sink until it has displaced
a mass of water equal to its mass (bouyancy).

Slide 25:
Two blocks won’t ____________________________ to the same depth if they’re
different relative ____________________________. If we add
____________________________ to a block it will sink deeper into the water. If we
remove ____________________________ from the block it will rise higher in the water.
The depth of the block ____________________________ as it is loaded and unloaded
with more matter. We believe the same happens to the
____________________________.

Slide 26: Isostatic Adjustment

In simplest terms, we think the crust does the same thing.
________________________________________________________ is the vertical
movement of crust to reach equilibrium. Mountain ranges have
“____________________________”, therefore. This idea may help to explain some
____________________________ and ____________________________ in the crust.

Earth’s Interior Notes 7

Slide 27: Crustal Rebound
Areas loaded with____________________________or
____________________________ may
show____________________________adjustment after the
____________________________ or ____________________________ is removed.
(Scandinavia, Lake Bonneville) The uplift of the crust after removal of
____________________________is called ____________________________ rebound.

Slide 28: Gravity Measurements

Gravity measurements use Newton’s Universal Law of Gravity as the founding principle:

F is ____________________________, G is a constant, M is
____________________________, and D is the distance from the center of the two
bodies. Gravity is affected with changes in either ____________________________ or
____________________________.

Slide 30: Gravity Measurements

Scientists use gravity meters (____________________________) to measure the
gravitational ____________________________ for the earth.

Slide 31:
____________________________ are used to measure gravity
____________________________ within the earth. A positive gravity anomaly means
the gravity of an area is ____________________________ than normal. A negative
gravity anomaly means the gravity of an area is ____________________________ than
normal.

Slide 32:
What are some causes of gravity anomalies?
1)+ anomalies
a) ____________________________forces are
____________________________ an area up. (mountain building)
b) ____________________________ bodies

Earth’s Interior Notes 8

2) - anomalies
a) ____________________________ forces are holding an area
____________________________ (subsidence) creates anomalies at the
____________________________.
b)other causes of lower ____________________________ in the rock (caverns)
Slide 33:

Slide 34:

Slide 35:

Slide 36:

Slides 37-45: Magnetic Field Studies

We’ve already discussed magnetic fields, magnetic poles, magnetic reversals, normal
polarity, reversed polarity, paleomagnetism, paleomagnetic reversals, and
magnetometers. Be sure you review the terminology.

Slide 46: Magnetic Field Studies

Magnetic studies reveal ______________________________ also. A
_____________________________ magnetic anomaly is a reading of
_____________________________ than normal magnetism.
A_____________________________magnetic anomaly is a
_____________________________ than normal magnetic reading.

What do magnetic anomolies tell us?

Earth’s Interior Notes 9

As with gravity, a deviation from average readings is called an
_____________________________. A _____________________________ magnetic
anomaly may be caused by a body of _____________________________ ore in a joint
in limestone, which is nonmagnetic.
A _____________________________ magnetic anomaly is caused by a down-dropped
_____________________________ (a graben) in igneous rock. The graben may be filled
with _____________________________ sediments where as the crystalline rocks on
either side of the_____________________________may be highly
_____________________________ due to magnetic minerals in the rock.
Slide 47:

Slide 48:

Slides 49+:
Heat flow also gives us evidence as to what earth is like inside. The
__________________________________________________________is the rise in
temperature with depth. Some areas have _____________________________ gradients
than others. (magma, cooling rock, radioactive elements). Heat flow may indicate
_____________________________and _____________________________in the
mantle. High heat flow is generally associated with _____________________________
plate boundaries and hot v_____________________________. Low heat flow areas are
associated with _____________________________ plate boundaries (trenches).

Earth’s Interior Notes 10