Investigating Plate Tectonics Earthquakes And Volcanoes

Some of the planet’s most destructive forces—including earthquakes and volcanic activity—are caused by the same factors that helped shape much of the Earth as it is today. Plate tectonics, or movement of the Earth’s outer layers, can occur in a number of different ways and produce a range of results, some minor and others far more considerable or devastating. Distinct maps, interesting sidebars, and annotated illustrations of the Earth’s layers are included in this volume, which details the motion of the planet and the nature and study of both earthquakes and volcanoes.

In this adventurous title, readers learn all about plate tectonics! A brief history of Alfred Wegener's theory of continental drift introduces readers to the development of plate tectonics and how it helped form the Earth we know today. Through colorful images, helpful charts and graphs, and easy-to-read text, readers will discover such fascinating topics as magnetic pole reversal, divergent and convergent plate boundaries, the ocean-continental division, and the San Andreas Fault. A captivating lab activity is featured to encourage children to further explore geology!

We live on Earth's crust, but there are other layers beneath the crust. They are the mantle and the outer and inner core. In 1915, scientist Alfred Wegener said that about 200 million years ago, Earth once had a single landmass. Hot, molten magma under the surface of the crust pushed the plates apart at a crack in Earth's crust and, eventually, the landmass was split apart and continents were formed. Wegener's work led to the study of plate tectonics.

Presents an introduction to volcanoes and earthquakes, explaining how the movement of the Earth's interior plates cause their formation and describing the volcanoes which currently exist around the world as well as some of the famous earthquakes of the nineteenth through twenty-first cenuturies.

This book goes into great detail about the different layers of the Earth and how the shifting tectonic plates can cause natural disasters, such as earthquakes and tsunamis. In-depth information and stunning photographs reinforce the informative text.

This full-color, dynamically illustrated volume helps readers better understand the causes of fractures and the magnitude and violence of the forces deep within the earth. It contains shocking scenes of cities convulsed by earthquakes and volcanoes, natural phenomena that, in mere seconds, unleash rivers of fire; destroy buildings, highways, bridges, and gas and water lines; and leave entire cities without electricity or phone service. Earthquakes near coastlands can cause tsunamis, waves that spread across the ocean with the speed of an airplane. A tsunami that reaches a coast can be more destructive than the earthquake itself. All of this fierce dynamism is brought into vivid focus here with stunning photographs, cutaway diagrams, and information-packed infographics.

Presents the online edition of the publication "This Dynamic Earth: The Story of Plate Tectonics" (ISBN 0-16-048220-8) by W. Jacquelyne Kious and Robert I. Tilling, published by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in Denver, Colorado. Posts contact information via mailing address, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail. Notes that a hard copy of the publication is available. Provides a table of contents and endnotes. Links to the USGS home page.

This is a discount Black and white version. Some images may be unclear, please see BCCampus website for the digital version.This book was born out of a 2014 meeting of earth science educators representing most of the universities and colleges in British Columbia, and nurtured by a widely shared frustration that many students are not thriving in courses because textbooks have become too expensive for them to buy. But the real inspiration comes from a fascination for the spectacular geology of western Canada and the many decades that the author spent exploring this region along with colleagues, students, family, and friends. My goal has been to provide an accessible and comprehensive guide to the important topics of geology, richly illustrated with examples from western Canada. Although this text is intended to complement a typical first-year course in physical geology, its contents could be applied to numerous other related courses.