Download Theory of Plate Tectonics

Theory of Plate Tectonics
Notes
Theory of Plate Tectonics
• Links the ideas of
and ocean
floor
over time.
and explains how the earth has
• Explains the
, movement,
and
destruction of the Earth’s crust.
Lithosphere
• Top most
part of the
.
Lithospheric Plate
• Moving irregular shaped
make the earth’s
• There are
.
major
and move at different
that fit together to
which are different
.
Plate Motion
• Convection
• Caused by differences in
move plates.
.
The Earth’s Spreading Ocean Floor
Mid-ocean Ridges
 Under water
Trenches
 V shaped valleys at the
found on the
.
 Deepest part of the
and
.
of oceans, which are usually
of continents and
Ocean Floor Spreading
 Lava erupts at rift valleys and
form new ocean
 Explains how the continents move.
Subduction
 Process in which
.
 Rocks are pushed
are
 They
to
.
crust plunges back into the
into trenches where they
by the heat of the earth.
.
Evidence to Support Ocean Floor Spreading
 Rock agerocks are found near rift
valleys and
rocks are found near
.
 Magnetic Stripes- magnetic rock line up with the
equally on
sides of the mid-ocean
.