NR 150 Lecture Notes - Plate Tectonics, Radioactive Decay, Tidal Acceleration
Document Summary
Inertia and tidal drag from the sun and the moon. Wegener"s explanation: centrifugal forces, puzzle pieces fit together, pros: mountain ranges and fossils would fit if all continents were put together, cons, no trails, the crust and mountains were supported mechanically. Looks at the chemical composition of the earth. Earth structure 2 perspectives: chemical composition, results from the process of young earth and subsequent density stratification, physical states. Mantle: layer beneath crust most of earth"s mass and volume. Mantle consists of mainly silicon and oxygen with some iron and magenesium. Inner core: solid are transformed into new elements: convection movement within a fluid resulting from differential heating and cooling of the fluid, convection produces mass transport. How deep have we ever drilled into the earth? (7 miles into the earth) crust. Buoyancy: ability of an object to float in a liquid by displacing a volume of that fluid equal in weight to the floating object"s own weight.
