THE

INTERNA
L
STRUCT
URE OF
THE
EARTH
GRADE
10

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 NAME:
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LESSON 1 – THE INTERNAL STRUCTURE OF THE EARTH

Use the information to complete the task

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1. Classification of rocks
The rocks of the Earth come in different sizes, colours and shapes. Rocks can be classified into
THREE main rock types:

2. Intrusive igneous activity

Intrusive igneous activity occurs when an enormous mass of magma does not reach the surface
and solidifies (hardens). The figure below shows how different intrusions form

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Intrusive features
 Earth’s mantle is made up of magma
 When magma cools it forms features inside of the Earth’s crust
 This is called intrusive igneous features

1. Batholiths
 Largest and deepest of all igneous intrusions
 may be associated with continental movements
 granite is the most common rock associated with batholiths

2. Laccoliths
 Smaller than batholiths
 Dome shape intrusion
 A saucer shaped intrusion

3. Lopolith
 A mushroom shaped intrusion

4. Dykes and sills

o When magma forces its way vertically through layers of rock. It forms a dyke
o Dykes are usually only a few meters across
o Dolerite as a rock commonly seen in dyke in south Africa

5. Pipe
 Central vents of old volcanoes
 Magma has solidified to form carrot-shaped intrusions
 Pipes are often called volcanic pipes
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PLATE TECTONICS

A theory that explains how major landforms are created as a result of the earth’s
movement. As heat rises from the mantle, it deforms the crust and breaks it into large
sections which can move on the mantle. We call this tectonic plates.

Most tectonic plates carry both continents and the oceans

Continental drift Sources:

What is it Continental drift:
It is the movement of continents over time.
A theory started by Alfred Wegner in 1923.
He said that the continents were all joined as a single land mass.

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How did continental drift occur?
200 million years there was one super continent called Pangea.

130 million years ago Pangea split up into two continents called .Gondwanaland and
Laurasia.

All the continents appear to fit neatly together, like a jigsaw puzzle.
This was what made Wegener think that maybe they really were joined together at one
time and then something caused the continents to drift apart over time.
He called his idea the theory of Continental Drift.

About 65 million years ago, these two landmasses split into smaller parts:
Laurasia – North America, Europe and Asia
Gondwanaland – Africa, South America, Antarctica, Australia
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Evidence of continental drift

1. East coast of South America and West coast of Africa match

2. Plant and animals of these two continents very similar.

3. Glacial deposits in Brazil match those in West Africa;

4. Rock formation match across coastlines of South Africa and South America;

5. Antarctica has coal deposits from plant Glossopteris. Same deposits in South
America, Africa, India and Australia.

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Plate tectonics

What is plate tectonics?

The earth’s plates are constantly moving in different ways and directions.
What happens during plate tectonics?

Plates are made of two types of crust.

• Plates beneath the ocean are thin (6 km) and made of heavy material.
• The continental plates are thicker (35-70 km) and made of lighter material.

How does plate tectonics occur?

The plates float on the more molten part of the mantle and moves
slowly (±5cm per year), due to convection currents caused by the heat
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in the Earth. Each of the plates have an edge and meet, move along,
move away from each other. These edges are called plate boundaries.
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Processes and landforms associated with different kinds of plate
boundaries

Divergent plate boundary

 Plates move away from one another.
 Molten rock (magma) rises to fill the space.
 New oceanic crust and mid ocean ridge form. E.g. Mid-Atlantic ridge.

Convergent plate boundary

 Two plates consisting of continental crust move together.
 Rocks between plates are forced upwards to form fold
 Mountains – Himalayas formed this way. Can cause strong earthquakes.

Transverse plate boundary

 Two plates slide slowly past each other sideways.
 No crust is formed or destroyed.
 If plates stick it can cause severe earthquakes.
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FOLDING AND FAULTING

Folding

What is folding?

FOLD MOUNTAINS: mountains formed by the compressing of sedimentary rock strata

during plate movement.

Formation: occur near convergent plate boundaries. Formed of thick deposits of

sedimentary rock. When these plate collide, the thick deposits are forced on the land
Highest mountains in the world are Fold Mountains.

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Different kinds of folds

1. Symmetrical fold: equal limbs, equal amount of pressure from either side

2. Overturned fold: turned over on top of the other folds

3. Overthrust folds: pressure causes the strata to fracture on one side of the fold

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Faulting

A fault is a fracture or crack between two blocks of rock.

Faults allow the blocks to move relative to each other.
There are three types of faults

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EARTHQUAKES

 Earthquakes are violent movements of earth’s crust associated with

plate movement.
 Earthquakes are a result of tectonic forces. Plate movements cause
faults in the crust.
 The faults cause tectonic stress which causes vibrations on the
earth’s crust. We call these vibrations Earthquakes

Important things you need to know about earthquakes

What is an earthquake? What causes an Earthquake?

• An earthquake is the violent shaking of the Earth

• Earth is made up of giant, slowly moving tectonic plates. Sudden movements where
these plates meet cause earthquakes.
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Important concepts

• FAULT: Break in Earth’s outer layer where the tectonic plates meet.
• FOCUS: The point underground where an earthquake starts
• EPICENTRE: The point on Earth’s surface directly above the focus.
• SEISMIC WAVES: Invisible waves of energy released by an earthquake
• SEISMOGRAPH: Instrument that measures and records earthquakes
• RICHTER SCALE: Scale on which the intensity of earthquakes are measured

How do earthquakes affect people?

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MEASURING EARTHQUAKES:
A seismograph is used to measure earthquakes, the paper on which the markings are
recorded is called a seismogram

What is a tsunami?

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  A tsunami is a series of sea waves which form when there is an earthquake
Under the seabed.
 Waves increase in height when they reach shallow water.
When tsunami reaches shallow coastal areas, it can reach a height of 50m.
 Tsunamis can cause flooding in coastal areas.
Tsunami Warning:
 Siren warning, radio, television, email or SMS.
 The warnings usually tell people which areas are safe and which routes to take.

What can be done to reduce the impact of earthquakes?

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VOLCANOES
The structure of volcanoes

Three stages of volcanoes

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Types of volcanoes

How do volcanoes affect people?

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