Chapter 7

A. Earth’s surface
The Earth’s surface isn’t flat or smooth, because it has been shaped and changed into many
different features over the years.
The Earth is made of many landforms from various different processes occurring above and
beneath the earth’s surface.
B. Types of Landforms
-Mountain -Hill -Plateau
-Plain -Valley

C. The Internal Structure of the Earth

1. The Earth is made up of 3 main components
-Crust
-Mantle
-Core
2. The crust:
This is the outermost layer of the Earth with a thickness of 6km to 70km. These
plates are divided into the continental plates and Oceanic plates
The Major plates are :
-North American Plate -Pacific Plate
-Indo Australian Plate -African Plate
-Eurasian Plate -Nazca Plate
-Arabic Plate
- Caribbean Plate
 The Mantle

The mantle makes 70% of the Earth’s mass with a thickness of 2900km
and a temperature of over 2000 Degree Celsius.

The Core

The core is the centre of the Earth with a thickness of 3500km and a
temperature of 5000 Degrees Celsius.

D. Internal Forces that create landforms

Most of the Earth’s physical features like mountains and volcanoes are the results of
processes occurring in the Earth’s surface such as the movement of plates which are
known as crustal movements.
There are 3 basic ways these plates move which are:
1. They may push each other such as plates bordering plates colliding with one
another. Ex. Eurasian with Pacific and Indo-Australian and Eurasian. Result of
plate movements : Fold mountains and volcanoes.
2. Bordering plates might pull each other apart from each other Result of plate
movements : underwater ridges.
3. They might slide into each other. Result of plate movements : Earthquake.

Two processes that are associated with plate movements are folding and vulcanicity

1. Folding
● This process occurs of the collision between plates
● When this happens, the rocks that make up the plates buckle under
pressure and fold.
● When the process occurs over and over mountains are formed. These
mountains can include the Himalayas.
2. Vulcanicity
● Vulcanicity refers to the process of magma from the mantle that is forced
out on to the Earth’s surface to cracks along plate borders.
● A volcano is a mountain that stores magma in the magma chamber that
erupts on to the Earth’s surface
● Volcanoes are normally found on plate boundaries in the result of crustal
movements. Most notably the Pacific Ring of Fire.
E. Volcanoes
The Basic structure of a volcano can include
● Crater : the opening of a volcano where ask, lava, rock fragments, and gases
are ejected
 ● Pipe : A channel where the magma travels through to the crater.
● Cone : The body of the volcano formed by successive layers
● Vent : an opening of the Earth’s crust where magma flows out
● Magma chamber: an underground cave where magma is located.

The 3 types of Volcanoes

● Active Volcanoes: a Volcano that is likely to erupt again in the future.

● Dormant Volcano : a Volcano that hasn’t erupt it years but may in the future.
● Extinct Volcano : a Volcano that has not erupted in a long period of time.

Volcanoes are formed when magma from within the Earth's upper mantle works its
way to the surface. At the surface, it erupts to form lava flows and ash deposits.

Within islands in Indonesia, there had been some cataclysmic eruptions such as the
eruption of Mount Tambora and Krakautoa.

Even though living near a volcano is very dangerous there is also many benefits such
as :

● Fertile Soil
After a volcanic eruption it leaves behind rich and fertile soil which can support
agricultural activities
● Scenic beauty
The scenic beauty of the volcano attracts tourist and promotes recreational
activities, so local people can earn money from said tourist.
● Precious stones and minerals
The volcanic eruption contains a rich source of precious stones and minerals that is
erupted out of it.

The formation of volcano

1. During a volcanic eruption, hot magma is forced out through the Earth’s crust
with great pressure.
2. Hot magma that flows onto the Earth’s crust is called lava. A huge amount of
ash and rock fragments is released during an eruption
3. On the Earth’s surface cools down and solidifies.
4. If the lava is liquid, the flow rate wil be fast, the volcano formed is slower and
has gentle slopes. If the lava is thick and sticky, the rate of lava flow will be
slow, the volcano is formed higher and have steeper slopes.
F. External Forces that Modify Landforms
Weathering
1. Mechanical
Mechanical weather takes place when rocks are broken down gradually on the
surface into smaller rock particles. These are caused by :
● Actions of water : cracks in rocks collect water from rain and snow.
Process :
At night, the temperature falls and water freezes in the rocks
The frozen water in the rocks having more volume cracked the rocks.
Than the water will change back to water on the day
Than repeat
● Change of temperature
Heat cause rocks to expand and contract
Different times of day has different temperatures, thus the rocks expand and
contracts all day which causes stress on the rocks that over time those rocks
will either disintegrate like through peeling unlike Thanos’s snap or by
breaking into smaller pieces.
2. Chemical

Chemical weathering takes place when rocks decompose due to change in their
chemical composition which is caused by

● Water action
Rainwater combine with CO2 in the air and produces carbonic acid that when falls on
rocks and reacts in a reaction by making Stalagmites and Stalactites in caves.

Erosion

Erosion is the process where rocks are worn away by agents such as water, wind,
and waves. These agents break apart rocks and moves them to other areas for
decomposition

● Waves:
Waves contain energy which carry sediments, which crash against the shoreline to
create landforms features.
● Wind
Strong winds can carry away the sand that hits the surfaces of rocks, the sand
scrapes their surfaces. Erosion by wind action actually takes place near the
bottom of the rocks because the sand are too heavy for the wind to lift
● Water
 The moving water in rivers carry small particles, sediments ,and silt that scrapes off
the surface of the rocks in it. Erosion via water can produce landforms
features such as canyons and valleys
G. How landforms effect people
Landforms affect people in many ways such as where people want to live or work. Some
places are even risky or beneficial to live in. For example the soil around a volcano is
very fertile so people lives around the volcano to do agriculture but it is risky
because the volcano may erupt.

Chapter 8

Landforms such as mountains and volcanoes are made up of rocks.

A. Igneous Rock
Igneous rocks are crystals formed by crystallization or freezing or hot magma
The time taken for the hot magma to cool and harden affects the type of igneous rock.
● Intrusive igneous rocks
They are known as coarse-grained igneous rocks. It is formed when hot magma cools
down a crystalizes slowly which results in large crystals
● Extrusive igneous rocks
They are fine-grained igneous rocks. It is formed when hot magma cools down a
crystalizes quickly, which results in small crystals
B. Sedimentary rocks
Sediments are made up of sand, clay and silt from weathering and erosion transported
by wind and water. These sediments accumulate layer by layer and slowly
compact that leads it to form a sedimentary rock. It is usually form remains of
organic materials
Sedimentary rocks are divided into 2 types which are
● Fine-grained sedimentary rocks which are formed by small sediments
● Coarse grained sedimentary rocks are formed by large sediments
C. Metamorphic Rock
This rock is transformed from igneous/sedimentary rocks threw a process called
metamorphosis threw extreme heat and pressure. It is also divided into 2 types
which are
● Foliated Metamorphic rock have layers or banding
● Non Foliated Metamorphic rock do not have layers or banding

The Rock Cycle: