Download Name: Plate Tectonics Test Date:______ Completion

Name: ____________________________ Plate Tectonics Test
Date:____________
Completion - Complete each sentence or statement. 1.75 pts. each
1. The region where oceanic plates sink down into the asthenosphere is called a
_________________________.
2. _________________________ is the theory that the Earth's lithosphere is divided into tectonic
plates that move around on top of the asthenosphere.
3. Earth's ____________________ is liquid. (inner core or outer core)
4. The asthenosphere is the layer of the Earth just below the ____________________.
(mesosphere or lithosphere)
5. The ridge in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean formed along a ____________________
boundary. (convergent or divergent)
6. When tectonic forces push on rocks, they usually cause ____________________ faults.
(normal or reverse)
7. Anticlines and synclines are the result of ____________________. (faults or folding)
Read each question below. After each question circle the best answer. 1.75 pts. each
8. What is it called when two oceanic
plates move apart and new crust is
formed?
a. Crustal integrating
b. Seafloor spreading
c. Continental Drift
d. Magma intrusions
9. What is it called when one plate is
pushed under another plate as they
collide?
a. Subduction
b. Mantle induction
c. Divergence
d. Convection
10. What is one phenomenon that can
happen when two plates slip past one
another?
a. Earthquakes
b. Subduction
c. Volcanic eruption
d. Seafloor Spreading
11. What can form when two continental
plates collide?
a. Folded mountains
b. Trenches
c. Mid-Ocean Ridge
d. Rift Valley
12. New crust is created by _____?
a. Magma from the mantle
b. Sediments from eroded continents
c. Rockslides
d. Meteors crashing into the ocean
Plate Boundaries - Circle the set off arrows that best represents the plate movement in the
following locations on earth and name the boundary type:
← →
→ ←
plates moving away from each other
plates moving toward each other
13. Mid-Atlantic Ridge
a. ← →
Type of boundary:
b.
→ ←
14. Himalayan Mountain Range
a. ← →
b.
→ ←
15. San Andreas Fault
a.
← →
↑↓ plates moving horizontally
c. no plate movement
c. no plate movement
b.
→ ←
c.
b.
→ ←
c. no plate movement
↑↓
16. Hawaiian Islands
a.
← →
17. Plate movement is thought to be the
result of
a. density differences between the mantle
& core.
b. rotation of the mantle around the core.
c. convection cells.
21. In what order do earthquake waves
arrive at seismic stations?
a. P-Waves, Then S-Waves, Then Surface Waves
b. S-Waves, Then P-Waves, Then Surface Waves
c. S-Waves, Then Surface Waves, Then P-Waves
d. Surface Waves, Then P-Waves, Then S-Waves
18. The lithosphere is composed of the
a. core and mantle.
b. crust and asthenosphere.
c. core and asthenosphere.
22. Which type of volcano is composed of
andesite lava flows and pyroclastic
deposits?
a. Caldera
b. Cinder Cone
c. Composite
d. Shield
19. Maps recording the locations of
earthquakes around the world show
that
a. earthquakes are evenly distributed.
b. most earthquakes follow the border of
the Atlantic Ocean.
c. most earthquakes occur in the interior of
continents.
d. most earthquakes surround the Pacific
Ocean.
20. Which of the following parts of the
earth may be described as behaving
plastically?
a. Lithosphere
b. Core
c. Asthenosphere
d. Crust
23. What is the point on the surface
nearest the earthquake?
a. Epicenter
b. Focus
c. Foreshock
d. Scarp
24. Which type of volcano is large and has
a low slope, such as Hawaiian volcanoes?
a. Cinder Cone
b. Caldera
c. Composite Volcano
d. Shield
25. What is an instrument used to study
earthquakes?
a. Epicenter
b. Focus
c. Seismograph
d. Scarp
32.______ is the force that squeezes
rocks together.
a. Tension
b. Shear
c. Elastic Limit
d. Compression
26. Where do most earthquakes occur?
a. Along Dikes
b. Along Folds
c. Along Faults
d. Along Joints
33.
____ is the force that pulls rocks
apart.
a. Tension
b. Shear
c. Elastic limit
d. Compression
27. Which type of volcano is high and
steep, such as Mount Rainier and Mount
St. Helens?
a. Caldera
b. Cinder Cone
c. Composite
d. Shield
34.
____ is the force that causes plates
to move sideways past each other.
a. Tension
b. Shear
c. Elastic limit
d. Compression
28. What is the point of origin of an
earthquake?
a. Epicenter
b. Focus
c. Foreshock
d. Aftershock
35.
____ faults are caused by tensional
forces.
a. Normal
b. Strike-slip
c. Reverse
d. Elastic
29. Which earthquakes travel through the
earth's mantle?
a. Only P-waves
b. Only P-waves and S-waves
c. Only P-waves and Surface Waves
d. Only S-waves
36.
____ faults are caused by
compressional forces.
a. Normal
b. Strike-slip
c. Reverse
d. Elastic
30. Which of the following would we
expect to find at a divergent plate
boundary?
a. A subduction zone.
b. Deep earthquakes.
c. A mid-oceanic ridge.
d. A trench
37.
The most destructive seismic wave
are ____.
31. What is a volcanic summit depression
such as Crater Lake in Oregon called?
a. Caldera
b. Cinder Cone
c. Shield
d. Composite
38. The type of collision that occurs when
two lithospheric plates converge is
determined primarily by the _________
of the plate.
a. density
b. mass
c. size
d. magnetism
a.
b.
c.
d.
Primary waves
Secondary waves
P-waves
Surface waves
39. What type of mountains led early
explorers to call the rim of the Pacific
Ocean the Ring of Fire?
a. Folded
b. volcanic
c. normal
d. fault-block
40. ____ faults are caused by shear
forces.
a. Normal
b. Strike-slip
c. Reverse
d. Elastic
Application:
Base your answers to questions __ through __ on the data table below, which gives information
collected at seismic stations A, B, C, and D for the same earthquake. Some of the data has been
deliberately omitted.
Complete the Chart: (4 pts)
Circle the correct answer (3 pts each)
41. What is the most probable reason for the absence of S-waves at station A?
(1) S-waves cannot travel through liquids.
(2) S-waves were not generated at the epicenter.
(3) Station A was located on solid bedrock.
(4) Station A was located too close to the epicenter.
42. What is the approximate distance from station C to the earthquake epicenter?
(1) 3,200 km
(3) 1,600 km
(2) 2,400 km
(4) 1,000 km
43. How long did it take the P-wave to travel from the epicenter of the earthquake to
seismic station D?
(1) 00:46:20
(3) 00:17:20
(2) 00:39:20
(4) 00:09:40
Short Answer: (5 pts each)
Examine the diagrams of plate activity. What type of boundary is it and answer the
questions that follow.
44. Diagram A: Name the Boundary type. Name the types of tectonic plates that
are colliding. What feature is being formed and why? Explain.
45. Diagram B: Name the Boundary type. Name the types of tectonic plates that
are colliding. What features are being formed and why? Explain.
Essay: (15 points)
Volcanoes:

Describe and draw the three types of volcanoes.

Describe their eruption styles.

Describe the different statuses for volcanoes and how scientist know that a
volcano is extinct.