Topic: Seismic Wave

Seismic Wave – mechanical vibrations that occur inside the earth (along fault lines) which is caused by the breakage of
rocks.

2 main types of Seismic Waves:

1. Surface wave – can only travel through the surface of the earth.
They arrive after the body waves.
• Rayleigh waves – wave rolls along the ground
• Love waves – faster than Rayleigh waves. It moves the ground side
to side horizontal motion, like that of a snake’s causing the ground
to twist.
2. Body wave – can travel through the earth’s interior
• P wave (Primary wave/Compressional) – is a pulse energy that
travels quickly through the earth and liquids. It travels faster than
the S wave.
• S wave (Secondary wave/Transverse) – travels slower than P wave
through earth and solids. The idea that the S wave cannot travel
through any liquid medium led seismologists to conclude that the
outer core is liquid.

Topic: Lithospheric Plates

Plate Tectonic Theory – It is a theory

that explains the structure of the Earth’s
crust associated with many Phenomena
resulting from the movement of rigid
lithospheric plates that interact slowly
over the underlying mantle.

Lithospheric Plates – are large sections

of the solid crust of the earth. In geology,
the lithosphere of the earth is divided
into small number of plates that float on
and travel independently over the
mantle. These giant pieces of the earth’s
crust that fit together and move around
on the earth’s surface are also called
tectonic plates.

There are fifteen major tectonic plates – seven are primary while eight are secondary.
✓ The tectonic plates that are larger in size are classified as primary plates. Primary plates are North American, South
American, Eurasian, Pacific, Australian, African, and Antarctic.

✓ The smaller tectonic plates are classified as secondary plates. Secondary plates are Arabian, Juan de Fuca, Cocos,
Nazca, Scotia, Indian, Philippine, and Caribbean.

Topic: Triangulation Method

Triangulation is a way of determining something's location using the locations of other things. In geology, it is a
method that uses distance information determined from 3 seismic stations to uniquely locate the earthquake.
 How to locate?
1. Study the data showing the difference in the arrival time of P-wave and S-wave on three seismic recording stations.
Recording Station Time Difference in the arrival time of P waves and S waves (s) Distance of the epicenter from
the station (km)
2. Compute the distance of the epicenter from each of the stations using this formula:
d = _Td___ x 100 km
8 seconds
Where: d = distance (km)
Td = time difference in the arrival time of
P-wave and S-wave (seconds)
3. Choose one of the recording stations and measure the computed distance on the map scale (the scale of the map on
the right is 1.5 cm = 200 km). Set your compass for that computed distance.
4. Center your compass on the station you have chosen. Draw a circle.
5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 for the rest of the stations. You should get three circles that intersect or nearly intersect at a
point. This intersection is the epicenter.

Topic: Patterns in Earth’s Features and Geologic events

• Looking at the map, most of volcanoes,

earthquakes epicenter, and major mountain belts
are distributed mainly around the tectonic plate
boundaries. This is because the boundaries push
further away, move closer together, and slide
against each other (convergent, divergent,
transform), thus creating either mountains, volcanoes, or earthquakes.
• The place on the earth where most of the earthquake originated or some mountains and volcanoes were formed
mark the boundaries of each lithospheric plates.
• Plates are large pieces of the upper few hundred kilometers of Earth that move as a single unit as it floats above
the mantle.
• The plates are in constant motion. As they interact along their margins, important geological processes take place,
such as the formation of mountain belts, earthquakes, and volcanoes.

LESSON: PLATE BOUNDARY

Plate Boundaries – these are margins or lines that divide tectonic
plates.
There are distinct types of plate boundaries which are differentiated
by the type of movement they exhibit.

Divergent Plate Boundaries- are located where plates are moving

away from each other. Plates move apart to produce gaps which are
molten lava.
(Spreading): This is where two plates move away from each other. Molten rock from the mantle erupts along the
opening, forming new crust. The earthquakes that occur along these zones,
called spreading centers, are relatively small. The Great Rift Valley in
Africa, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden all formed as a result of
divergent plate motion.

Features created at Divergent Plate Boundary: volcanoes, island arc, rift

valleys, oceanic ridges, earthquakes and tsunamis.

Convergent Plate Boundaries – are located where plates are moving

towards one another. Two lithospheric plates move together.

(Colliding): This occurs when plates move towards each other and
collide. When a continental plate meets an oceanic plate, the thinner,
denser, and more flexible oceanic plate sinks beneath the thicker,
more rigid continental plate. This is called subduction. Subduction
causes deep ocean trenches to form, such as the one along the west coast
of South America. The Marianas Trench is part of the Izu–Bonin–Mariana
subduction system that forms the boundary between two tectonic plates.

Features created at Convergent Plate Boundary: volcanoes, volcanic arcs, mountains (especially in arcs), oceanic trenches,
and island arcs.

Types of Convergent Boundary:

Continental to Continental:
- When two continental plates collide the two continental plates form a mountain.
Oceanic to Continental:
- When Oceanic plate and Continental plate collide the dense oceanic plate subduct and the continental plate
remain above forming volcanoes.
Oceanic to Oceanic:
- when two oceanic plates collide The older oceanic plate will subduct below the younger oceanic plate

Transform Plate Boundaries – Along the third type of plate boundary, two plates move laterally and pass each other
along giant fractures in Earth's crust.

(Sliding): When two tectonic plates slide past each other, the place where they meet is a transform or lateral fault. The
San Andreas Fault is one of the best examples of lateral plate motion.

Features created at Transform Plate Boundary: fault, earthquake.

LESSON : PLATE BOUNDARIES ASSOCIATED WITH LITHOSPHERIC PLATE AND TYPES OF STRESS
TYPES OF STRESS
 Tension results when a system of forces pulls or stretches on objects from opposite side.
 Compression results when a system of forces pushes on object from opposite side.
 Shearing results when a system of forces is applied to an object in different directions.
 Topic: Seafloor spreading

Seafloor spreading is a geologic process in which tectonic plates—large slabs of Earth's lithosphere—split apart from
each other. Seafloor spreading and other tectonic activity processes are the result of mantle convection. Mantle convection
is the slow, churning motion of Earth’s mantle. Convection currents carry heat from the lower mantle and core to the
lithosphere. Convection currents also “recycle” lithospheric materials back to the mantle.

Seafloor spreading occurs at divergent plate boundaries. As tectonic plates slowly move away from each other, heat
from the mantle’s convection currents makes the crust more plastic and less dense. The less-dense material rises, often
forming a mountain or elevated area of the seafloor. Eventually, the crust cracks. Hot magma fueled by mantle convection
bubbles up to fill these fractures and spills onto the crust. This bubbled-up magma is cooled by frigid seawater to form
igneous rock. This rock (basalt) becomes a new part of Earth’s crust.

Plates that are not subducting are driven by gravity sliding

off the elevated mid-ocean ridges a process called ridge
push.

The driver for seafloor spreading in plates with active

margins is the weight of the cool, dense, subducting slabs
that pull them along, or slab pull.

Topic: The Continental Drift theory

Continental Drift Theory – the theory that says continents were once a part of a single landmass that broke apart and
moved to their present location.
Pangaea – name given to the single landmass that was present 200 million years ago
which means “All Earth” .
Evidence of Continental Drift Theory:
 Continental Jigsaw Puzzle – continents that look like separated pieces of a
jigsaw puzzle. Ex. East-cost of North and South America would fit the shape
of the West-cost of Africa and Europe.
 Fossils – very similar fossils in rock masses separated by vast distances and
by ocean.
 Rock and Mountain – mountain ranges are formed by plates pushing against
each other.
 Climate data