Geology (2 of 2) | A Kentucky Crosswords Word Search Puzzle

Geology Two -- A Word Search Puzzle

Edited by Vicki A Benge

The second puzzle of two, the answers in the word search puzzle below are terms used in concepts studied in the science of geology. Find and circle the words that run vertically, diagonally and horizontally throughout the grid. To read simple definitions of twenty-five of the words used in the puzzle, scroll down the page.

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Answer Words Defined

Below are simple definitions for the words used in the puzzle above:

nodule An irregular mass of rock, with a composition differing from the surrounding rock, and usually harder than the surrounding rock or sediment, that forms by precipitation within the host rock.
nunatak An Inuit word for an exposed rock feature projecting above a glacial ice field.
obsidian A dark, (usually black, but may be brown or red), glass-like volcanic rock formed by the rapid cooling and solidification of lava without crystallization. (It can be transparent in pieces.)
ooid A spherical grain of sand composed of concentric layers of calcium carbonate or radiating needle-shaped crystals of other minerals.
Oort (cloud) A hypothetical diffuse swarm of comets and other bolides at the outer margins of the solar system; perturbations (as by other stars) can upset a comet's orbit and may send it tumbling toward the sun. (Named for the Dutch astronomer, Jan Hendrix Oort who proposed the existence of such a cloud.)
paleosol A layer of ancient fossil soil buried beneath newer sedimentary or volcanic deposits.
Pangea An ancient hypothetical supercontinent consisting of virtually all the continents. Pangea supposedly split into Laurasia and Gondwanaland.
placer A deposit of sand or gravel in a stream or river containing concentrated heavy minerals. (Minerals extracted in placer mining may include gold, platinum, and diamonds.)
playa A desert basin with no outlet that intermittently fills with rainwater. After the rainwater evaporates, salt deposits are left behind, leaving the common desert feature – a salt lake.
protolith The precursor rock, such as limestone, from which a metamorphic rock has formed.
polynya A large area of water reduced ice concentration surrounded by sea ice.
pumice A silica-rich glassy igneous rock having a spongy texture and so filled with gas bubbles that it floats on water. Pumice is used as an abrasive in scouring powders.
p-wave The primary wave of an earthquake. It is the first wave to arrive in a episode of earthquake motion. Unlike S-waves, (secondary or shearing waves) P-waves will travel through liquids.
pyrite The most common sulfide mineral, (iron disulfide, with formula FeS2). It has a distinctive pale yellow color and is what is known as "fool’s gold".
regolith A layer of loose and unstratified rock debris, or "blanket rock", that covers solid rock. Regolith is made up of rock material that is made up of different elements than the rock it covers.
rhyolite A fine-grained very acidic volcanic rock with a mineralogy similar to that of granite. Rhyolite contains feldspar and quartz.
rifting The tectonic breaking apart of a continent or supercontinent into one or more smaller continental fragments by land being moved upward, or lifted.
Rodinia A supercontinent consisting of all or nearly all of the continents, centered around the South Pole. Consolidated one billion years ago, this supercontinent broke into smaller continents well before the Cambrian.
sciorruck An underwater landslide that triggers a tsunami.
tectonics The branch of geology that deals with the study of the folding and faulting of a planet’s (or moon’s) crust and the processes that take place within it.
tephra The erupted material, including ash and molten lava materials, that is produced as a result of a volcanic eruption.
till Unstratified glacial debris that consists largely of sand, clay, gravel, and boulders mixed together.
tuff Material erupted from a volcano or volcanic vent, composed of compacted volcanic ash that solidifies in the air before being deposited.
varve A set of paired layers in a clay deposited in a glacial lake on a yearly cycle. The summer layer (courser grained, including sand and silt carried during spring melt) and a winter layer (finer grained deposited in quiet water conditions under the ice).
xenolith A piece of rock of different origin from the igneous rock in which it is embedded.
zircon A common mineral with formula ZrSiO2, occurring in small crystals and found in all types of igneous rocks and in many sandstones. A chief source of zirconium, it is used as a refractory when opaque and as a gem when transparent. Zircon also aids in radiometric dating due to the presence of small amounts of uranium and thorium found in this crystal.

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KENTUCKY CROSSWORDS

Geology Two -- A Word Search Puzzle

Edited by Vicki A Benge

Answer Words Defined