The Facts on File Dictionary of Earth Science

401 Pages·2006·1.925 MB·English

by  Jacqueline Smith

The Facts On File
DICTIONARY
of
EARTH SCIENCE
Revised Edition

The Facts On File
DICTIONARY
of
EARTH SCIENCE
Revised Edition
Edited by
Jacqueline Smith
The Facts On File Dictionary of Earth Science
Revised Edition
Copyright © 1976, 1979, 2000, 2006 by Market House Books Ltd
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any
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PREFACE
This dictionary is one of a series designed for use in schools. It is intended for stu-
dents of earth sciences, but we hope that it will also be helpful to other science
students and to anyone interested in science. Facts On File also publishes dictionar-
ies in a variety of disciplines, including astronomy, chemistry, biology, computer
science, physics, mathematics, forensic science, weather and climate, and marine sci-
ence.
This book is based on an edition first published by the Macmillan Press in 1976 and
it was last revised in 2000. This second Facts on File edition has been extensively re-
vised and extended. The dictionary now contains over 3500 headwords covering the
terminology of modern earth science. A totally new feature of this edition is the in-
clusion of over 1,500 pronunciations for terms that are not in everyday use. An ap-
pendix lists the chemical elements and their properties and includes a list of Web sites
and a bibliography. A guide to using the dictionary has also been added to this lat-
est version of the book.
We would like to thank all the people who have cooperated in producing this book.
A list of contributors is given on the acknowledgments page. We are also grateful to
the many people who have given additional help and advice.
v
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Editors (previous editions)
Stella Stiegeler B.Sc.
John O. E. Clark B.Sc.
Contributors
B. M. Abbott B.Sc., Ph.D., F.G.S.
Anna Clyde B.Sc.
Andrew Hill B.Sc., Ph.D., F.G.S.
I. P. Joliffe B.Sc., M.Sc, Ph.D., C.I.C.E., F.C.S.,
F.R.G.S.
R. B. Lanwarne B.Sc.
P. A. Smithson B.Sc., Ph.D., F.R.Met.S.
T. J. Speechley B.Sc.
F. A. Sultan B.Sc., M.Sc., D.I.C.
S. D. Weaver B.Sc., Ph.D., F.G.S.
A. C. Wornell B.A.
Pronunciations
William Gould B.A.
vi
CONTENTS
Preface v
Acknowledgments vi
Guide to Using the Dictionary viii
Pronunciation Key x
Entries A to Z 1
Appendixes
The Chemical Elements 383
Web Sites 385
Bibliography 387
vii
GUIDETOUSINGTHEDICTIONARY
The main features of dictionary entries are as follows.
Headwords
The main term being defined is in bold type:
abyssal rock A type of intrusive igneous
rock formed deep within the Earth’s crust.
Variants
Sometimes a word has a synonym or alternative spelling. This is placed in brackets after
the headword, and is also in bold type:
bed (stratum) The smallest division of
stratified sedimentary rocks, consisting of
a single distinct sheetlike layer of sedimen-
tary material ... .
Here, ‘stratum’ is another term for ‘bed’. Generally, the entry for the synonym consists
of a simple cross-reference:
stratum See bed.
Abbreviations
Abbreviations for terms are treated in the same way as variants:
Antarctic bottom water (AABW) A
cold and extremely saline water mass, the
most dense water of the global oceans, that
forms in the Southern Ocean along the
coast of Antarctica ... .
The entry for the abbreviation consists of a reference:
AABW See Antarctic bottom water.
Multiple definitions
Some terms have two or more distinct senses. These are numbered in bold type
aggregate 1. Mineral fragments and/or
rock particles that combine to form a hard
mass.
2. (in soil science) A cluster of soil particles
that have bonded together through aggre-
gation.
viii
Cross-references
These are references within an entry to other entries that may give additional useful
information. Cross-references are indicated in two ways. When the word appears in the
definition, it is printed in small capitals:
ablation cone A cone of FIRN, ice, or
snow covered in rock debris caused by dif-
ferential ABLATION.
In this case there are cross-references to the entries for ‘firn’ and ‘ablation’.
Alternatively, a cross-reference may be indicated by ‘See’, ‘See also’, or ‘Compare’, usu-
ally at the end of an entry:
alpine A type of climate found in moun-
tainous areas above the timberline but
below any permafrost level. Grass and
other low-growing plants make up the typ-
ical vegetation. See also alp.
Hidden entries
Sometimes it is convenient to define one term within the entry for another term:
anemometer... An instrument for mea-
suring wind speed and often wind direc-
tion. The most common type, the cup
anemometer, has three cups mounted sym-
metrically about a vertical rotating axis ....
Here, ‘cup anemometer’ is a hidden entry under ‘anemometer’, and is indicated by italic
type. The individual entries consists of a simple cross-reference:
cup anemometer See anemometer.
Pronunciations
Where appropriate pronunciations are indicated immediately after the headword, en-
closed in forward slashes:
abiotic /ay-bÿ-ot-ik/ Describing a non-
living factor in an ECOSYSTEM.
Note that simple words in everyday language are not given pronunciations. Also head-
words that are two-word phrases do not have pronunciations if the component words are
pronounced elsewhere in the dictionary.
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