geophysics
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of geophysics
Explanation
Geophysics is the science that deals with how interactions between matter and energy — physics — affect physical properties and processes on, in, and around the planet. Geophysics is an earth science that combines elements of geology and physics. It involves understanding and analyzing many different geologic phenomena, such as Earth's magnetic field and the temperature, fluidity, and composition of Earth's layers. Geophysicists use instruments to measure things like sound waves, gravity, and magnetism. They may use seismographs to detect and record ground vibrations. The data geophysicists gather can be analyzed using mathematics to do things like map underground rock layers, locate oil and mineral deposits, or predict earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Lees, a research associate at the University of Manchester in the United Kingdom, worked on the study when he was a geophysics doctoral student at Stanford.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 25, 2024
In a recent study that Simons co-authored, Simons and his colleagues suggest that the concept of time as it pertains to geophysics could be included when determining habitability.
From Salon • Jan. 11, 2024
That “helped eliminate some hypotheses about its formation,” says marine geophysicist Gail Christeson, who is a program director for marine geology and geophysics at the National Science Foundation.
From Science Magazine • Jan. 8, 2024
Their work also has implications beyond the daily brew, as the electrification of granular materials is an active area of research in material science, geophysics, and engineering.
From Science Daily • Dec. 6, 2023
By all the laws of geophysics the Sierra Nevadas should be sinking, as if into quicksand.
From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
