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Tectonic Plates 6.10CD

Terms in this set (14)

Tectonic Plate
Huge pieces of lithosphere that slowly move on the asthenosphere, and consist of the crust and the rigid, uppermost part of the mantle.
African Plate
A tectonic plate division of the lithosphere, including the continental crust of Africa and the surrounding oceanic crust.
Pacific Plate
A tectonic plate division of the lithosphere that is composed entirely of oceanic crust, lies beneath the Pacific Ocean.
Eurasian Plate
A tectonic plate division of the lithosphere, including most of landmasses of Europe and Asia.
Indo-Australian Plate
A tectonic plate division of the lithosphere including the continental crust of India and Australia and the surrounding oceanic crust.
Northern American Plate
A tectonic plate division of the lithosphere including the continental crust of Greenland, North America, Siberia, and the surrounding oceanic crust.
South American Plate
A tectonic plate division of the lithosphere including the continental crust of South American and oceanic crust extending to the Mid-Atlantic ridge.
Volcanic Eruptions
Major geological events that occur when a dense plate subducts below a less dense plate as they converge.
Subduction
Occurs when one plate is denser than another and is forced below as the two plates converge at their boundary.
Earthquakes
Major geological events that occur when plates shift suddenly and release stored energy; a frequent occurrence at transform boundaries.
Mountain Building
Major geological event that occurs when continental plates of equal density converge.
Ocean Basins
Movement of plates create dense oceanic crust that sinks lower in the asthenosphere than the less dense continental crust, resulting in depressions on Earth's surface that fill with water.
Lithosphere
Layer of the Earth made up of the crust and upper mantle which is broken up into tectonic plates.
Asthenosphere
The solid, plastic layer of the mantle beneath the lithosphere; made of mantle rock that flows very slowly, which allows tectonic plates to move on top of it.
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