Download 1.6 Drifting apart

CHAPTER 1 PLATE TECTONICS AND LANDFORMS
1.6 DRIFTING APART
Name:
ACTIVITIES
Think
1.
Name the tectonic plates that are separated by the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (see the map on
page 5).
2.
Use an atlas to locate the islands on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Give the latitude and
longitude for each. Describe the spatial association between the location of the ridge and
the location of islands and volcanoes.
3.
Explain why a chain of volcanoes, like the one in the photograph, forms in Iceland.
4.
Visit the website for this book and click on the Ethiopian Split weblink for this chapter
(see ‘Weblinks’, page vii). Describe the scene in the photograph and explain what is
happening.
Design and create
5.
Draw what you imagine Iceland will look like in the future after rifting has completed.
Provide new names for each of the smaller islands. In which direction, and towards which
continent, will each island drift?
6.
Draw a series of sketches to show what you predict will happen to the African landmass
as the Great Rift Valley continues to rift. Include a map of Africa showing the change in
shape that might occur. Annotate your sketches to justify the predictions you have made.
7.
Refer to an atlas map of Africa and look at the shape of the island of Madagascar. Try to
imagine fitting this island back into the mainland. Using plate tectonic terms, write a
paragraph to describe how Madagascar’s location has changed over time.
8.
Find out more about tectonic landforms by planning a Great Rift Valley tour for a group
of geographers who wish to visit landforms to witness rifting in Africa. Conduct research
about places and landforms along the rift and produce a landform tour brochure. Present
the brochure in a PowerPoint format.
Notes:
© John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd
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