Troposphere: The troposphere of a terrestrial planet is the lowest member of the atmosphere. On Earth, the troposphere starts atop the ground surface and terminates roughly 10 kilometers above mean sea level. In fact, geologists understand that most of the Earth’s water vapor (clouds) exists in the troposphere. And the next member of the atmosphere above the troposphere is the stratosphere.
Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs): Volatile Organic Compounds are toxic organic chemicals with higher tendencies to change from liquid to vapor phase under typical earth pressures and temperatures, and usually have little-to-no water solubility characteristics. VOCs are commonly found within hydrocarbon-based fuel additives, industrial solvents, refrigerants, hydraulic fluids, degreasers, and more. These…
Anion Anion: In the fields of chemistry and geochemistry, an anion is a negatively charged ion. The oppositely charged ion is a cation.
Body-Wave Magnitude Body-Wave Magnitude: A method for determining earthquake size from the amplitude of body waves. The body-wave magnitude focuses on P-waves and S-waves, which travel faster through the Earth’s crust and mantle.
Runoff (R) The term “Runoff” (R) in hydrogeology and geology refers to the part of rainfall which accumulates on the ground surface and naturally forms into flowing streams.
Hydrogen Sulfide Soil Gas (In Natural Gas) Hydrogen Sulfide: Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) soil gas geologically occurs upon the thermal and microbial decomposition of subsurface organic material deposits. It is typically identifiable in biogenic and petrogenic natural gas sources, along with higher concentrations of methane soil gas. Additionally, nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen, ethane, and isobutane exist within…
Plutonic Rock (Igneous) Definition The term “Plutonic” in the field of geology refers to an igneous rock, wherein the magma had originally cooled, solidified, and crystalized underground. A plutonic rock is generally coarsely crystalline (phaneritic) and is formed during a massive geologic intrusion of magma. In fact, outcropping (or daylighting) plutonic rocks are geologic features…
