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Plate Tectonics

Terms in this set (19)

Plate Tectonics
The theory that the earth is broken into plates and are in motion due to convection currents in the asthenosphere (upper mantle)
Alfred Wegener
Proposed the continental drift theory in the 1900s
Pangea
term for the super continent which contained all the plates together
Crust
The thin and solid outermost layer of the Earth above the mantle
Lithosphere
The solid, outer layer of the Earth that consists of the the crust and the rigid upper part of the mantle
Asthenosphere
The soft layer of the mantle on which the tectonic plates move
Transform Boundary
The boundary between tectonic plates that are sliding past each other horizontally
Continental Drift
The hypothesis that states that the continents once formed a single landmass, broke up, and drifted to their present locations
Sea-floor spreading
The process by which new oceanic crust forms as magma rises towards the surface and solidifies
Convergent Boundary
The boundary formed by the collision of two plates
Divergent Boundary
The boundary between two tectonic plates that are moving away from each other
rift valley
long, narrow depression formed at divergent boundaries
subduction
process in which two plates collide and the denser ocean plate descends below the other
convection current
this type of energy transfer is believed to drive plate movement
Evidence of Continental Drift
Fossils, climate, rocks, glacial deposits
trench
extremely deep areas in the ocean that are created by a subducting plate
ocean basin
areas that are below sea level
hot spot
an area in the mantle that is super heated and melts through the crust (like a blow-torch)
mid-ocean ridge
an underwater mountain range made at divergent plate boundaries
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