geography: the study of people, places, and things are located and of the ways in which things relate
absolute location: the position on the earth which a place can be found
equator: an imaginary circle around the middle of the earth, halfway between the North Pole and the South Pole
longitude: imaganary lines that run north and south of merideans
hemisphere: half of the earth usually referred to as eastern or western; northern or southern
latitude: an imaginary line around the Earth parallel to the equator
relative location: where a place is located in relation to other places
prime meridean: immagionary line that is 0 longitude and runs from the north pole to the south pole
formal region: areas in which certain characteristics are found throughout the area
functional region: one centeral place and the surrounding places
core: center of the Earth that contains very hot metal, iron and nickle
mantle: a thick layer of rock
crust: the rocky surface layer
contients: large landmasses in the oceans
relief: differences in elavation between the highest and lowest points
lava: molten rock
fold: rock layers bend and buckle
faults: breaks in the Earth’s crust
plate tectonics: the therory that the Earth’s outer shell is composed of a number of large, unanchored plates, or slabs of rock, whose constant movement explains earthquakes and volcanic activity
contiental drift therory: the idea that contients slowly shift their positions due to movement of the tectonic plates on which they ride
Ring of Fire: a circle of valcanos surrounding the Pacific Ocean
geology: the study of the earth’s physical structure and history
mechanical weathering: when rock is actually broken or weakened physically
chemical weathering: the process of altering a rock’s chemical makeup by changing the minerals that form the rock of combining them with new chemical elements
weathering: the breakdown of rock at or near the Earth’s surface into smaller and smaller pieces
acid rain: chemicals in the polluted air combine with water vapor and fall back to earth
erosion: the movement of weathered materials
sediment: small particles of sand, soil, and gravel
loess: windblown deposits of mineral-rich dust and silt
glaciers: huge, slow-moving sheets of ice
moraines: ridgelike piles of rock and debris left behind from glaciers
