Name:_Lindsey Bell_

ID:_____________________

Date:_August 29,2010____

LAB SECTION:____________

Assignment #2, Due Thursday, September 2nd.

Use your book, the library and internet resources. Make sure to cite where you obtained your
info!

1) How old is the Earth and describe its mechanisms of formation. Be specific (5 points)
The Earth was formed 4.556 billion years ago and it took 300 years to form. The
heavier elements(iron and nickel) fell to the core, which caused heat by friction, leading the
lighter elements to displace. Heating and cooling of the molten interior that rose to the crust
caused the compounds of different densities to separate themselves from each other.
2) How did the Ocean’s form and why is this important? (5 points)
The oceans could have formed in two different ways- form inside the earth or
from the outside of the earth. The mantle holds about 10 times the amount of H2O in the ocean,
volcanoes could have released the H2O with 100 times the volume of the ocean. The other
option, oceans formed from the outside the earth would have been caused by icy comets
vaporized in the atmosphere for over 4 billion years (that would equal 2-3 times the volume of
the ocean). The oceans were most likely formed because of the heating and cooling mentioned in
answer 1. As the crust cooled water vapor condensed.(The inside the earth theory makes more
sense to me personally.)
3) Define Latitude and Longitude, how they can be used to pinpoint your location? How
would you go about calculating the distance between two sets of coordinates. (5 points) (state
your assumptions)!!!
Latitude lines are parallel to the equators and each other latitude line and are
measured in degrees and minutes. Longitude lines are measured from the prime meridian, lines
the run north to south connecting both poles. These lines are not parallel to each other and end up
intersecting at the poles. When latitude and longitude lines intersect it reveals a location on the
globe. Distance is determined by using a compass to connect to points (lat, long.) and measuring
the distance between them using a ruler then transferring that length to latitude then again to
nautical miles.

4) Determine the distance from your home town and Columbia SC. If your home time is
Columbia, SC. Use Seattle, WA instead. SHOW YOUR WORK AND STATE YOUR
ASSUMPTIONS! (a website is not appropriate) (5 points).

5) You’re sailing on a small boat in 1901. After eating lunch, you realize you’ve lost track
of land and are completely lost. What are some of the techniques you could use to find your way
back home? (5 points)
 I would use celestial navigation. The tail of the little dipper is the north star and work
from there. I could also use wave heights(reflective and deflective).
6) Design a planet. Be imaginative in the forms of life you might want to live there. Will
there be an ocean? An ocean of what? (5 points) Extra points for 3D.
The mass of my planet will be 5.67 × 1024 kg which is close to Earth’s mass.
The distance from the sun would need to be 90 million miles from the sun- making it a
litlle hotter than Earth. I would want my planet to have plate tectonics as well as
volcanoes- this will cause compounds such as H20 and CO2 to welcome themselves to
the planet! These compounds will form an atmosphere and an ocean! Life a lot like
humans could survive on my planet.