Download Dynamic Earth Interactive Web Quest

Name:____________________________________________________ Period:____________ Date:________
Dynamic Earth Interactive Web Quest
Directions: Go to Mrs. Balducci’s website and locate the Chapter 7 The Restless Earth Links. Click on the
Dynamic Earth Interactive website link.
1.) Read the Introduction. Then click on the red arrow where it says Start your exploration
with Earth’s Structure.
2.) Read Earth’s Structure, What’s inside the earth? Roll your mouse over the diagrams to
read more information about Earth’s interior.
a. List Earth’s layers from innermost to outermost.
Inner Core, Outer Core, Mantle, Crust______________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
b. What is the lithosphere? Made up of the crust and a tiny bit of the upper mantle. This layer is
divided into several constantly (very slowly) moving plates of solid rock that hold the continents
and oceans.____________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
c. What is the asthenosphere? The plates of the lithosphere move (or float) on this hot, malleable
semi liquid zone in the upper mantle, directly underneath the lithosphere._________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
3.) Locate the red arrow at the bottom of the page and click on Next Chapter: Plate Tectonics. Follow the
directions on the Plate Tectonics page. Read the information on the page and then click on How Do
We Know This?
a. What evidence did Alfred Wegner discover along the coastlines of continents?
i. Noticed the coastlines of Africa and South America looked like they might fit together.
ii. Discovered evidence that the same plant and animal fossils were found along the coasts
of these continents, although they were now separated by vast oceans.
iii. Noticed geological formations like mountain ranges, on the two continents also
matched up.
b. What is Pangaea?_The name given to the supercontinent that existed more than 225 million
year ago, in which the present-day continents were joined together in one large land mass.
c.
What is the plate tectonics theory? States that the earth’s outer layer, or lithosphere, is
broken into several large slabs called plates. These plates which hold the continents and
oceans, are slowly but constantly moving around the planet.
4.) Locate the red arrow at the bottom of the page and click on Continents Over Time. Follow the
directions on the next page and complete the activity.
a. What do some scientist believe will happen to the continents in the future? They believe that
the continents will come together to form one large landmass again in the future.
5.) Move on to the next chapter, Plate Boundaries, to learn how plates interact. Carefully read the entire
page and answer the following questions as you read:
a. Are the earth’s continents constantly moving? Why? Yes, the Earth’s continents are constantly
moving due to the motion of the tectonic plates.
b. What is continental crust? A layer of Earth’s crust that lies under the seven continents.
c.
What is oceanic crust? The type of crust lying under the oceans of the world.
d. What is a boundary? The border between two tectonic plates.
e. Look at the map and name two tectonic plates that form a boundary.
___South American Plate and African Plate.__________________________________________
f. What is a convergent boundary and give an example. Occurs where two plates are pushing
toward each other. Ex.: the boundary between the Eurasian Plate and the Indian Plate at the
Himalayas.
g.
Draw two arrows representing a convergent boundary: ____ ________________
h. What is a divergent boundary and give an example. Two plates that are moving apart from
each other. Ex.The boundary between the African Plate and the Arabian Plate in the Red Sea.
i.
Draw two arrows representing a divergent boundary: ___ ______________________
j.
What is a transform boundary and give an example. Occurs where two plates slide past each
other. Ex. the boundary between the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate in California.
k.
Draw two arrows representing a transform boundary: _______________________________
6.) Use the map at the bottom of the page to see where the three types of plate boundaries are found
throughout the world.
7.) Locate the red arrow at the bottom of the page and click on Plates & Boundaries Challenge. Complete
the challenge using your textbook page D11. When you are finished move on to the next chapter.
8.) Read the Slip, Slide, & Collide page and answer the following question:
a. Give examples of geological phenomena we experience on Earth that are caused by the
slipping, sliding, and colliding of tectonic plates. Volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and
tsunamis.
9.) Locate the red arrow at the bottom of the page and click on See what happens at different plate
boundaries.
a. Convergent Boundaries – Colliding Plates
i.
What happens at convergent boundaries, where an oceanic plate and a continental plate
collide?
Oceanic crust tends to be more dense then continental crust, so the denser oceanic crust
gets bent and pulled under, or subducted, beneath the lighter and thicker continental crust.
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
ii.
What forms where the oceanic plate and continental plate collide?
This forms what is called a subduction zone. As the ocean crust sinks, a deep oceanic
trench, or valley is formed at the edge of the continent. The magma formed at the
subduction zone rises up toward Earth’s surface and builds up in magma chambers, where it
feeds and creates volcanoes.___________________________________________________
iii.
What happens at convergent boundaries, where two oceanic plates collide?
A subducted zone is also generated. The older plate is forced under the younger one, and it
leads to the formation of chains of volcanic islands known as island arcs.________________
__________________________________________________________________________
iv.
What happens at convergent boundaries where two continental plates collide?
A collision between two continental plates crunches and olds the rock at the boundary,
lifting it up and leading to the formation of mountains and mountain ranges.________
______________________________________________________________________
b. Divergent Boundaries – Spreading Plates
i.
What happens at divergent boundaries that are located in the middle of the ocean?
Divergent boundaries in the middle of the ocean contribute to sea floor spreading. As
plates made of oceanic crust pull apart, a crack in the ocean floor appears. Magma then
oozes up from the mantle to fill in the space between the plates, forming a raised ridge
called a mid-ocean ridge. The magma also spreads outward, forming new ocean floor and
new oceanic crust.
ii.
What happens at divergent boundaries that are located along two continental plates?
A valleylike rift develops. This rift is a dropped zone where the plates are pulling apart. As
the crust widens and thins, valleys form in and around the area, as do volcanoes, which may
become increasingly active. Streams and rivers flow into low valleys and long, narrow lakes
can be created.
c. Transform Boundaries – Grinding Plates
i.
How does a transform boundary produce an earthquake?
Two tectonic plates grind past each other in a horizontal direction. Edges of tectonic plates
are jagged rather than smooth and as the plates grind past each other, the jagged edges
strike each other, catch, and stick, locking the plate in place for a time. A lot of stress builds
up at the fault line. This stress is released in quick bursts when the plates suddenly slip into
new positions. The sudden movement is what we feel as the shaking and trembling of an
earthquake.
10.) Locate the red arrow at the bottom of the page and click on Plate Interactions Challenge. Write
down your score here: __________________
11.) Congratulations you’ve completed your Dynamic Earth Interactive Webquest. Now take the test to
see how much you’ve learned during this interactive. You can find the link for the test along the
green bar at the top of the screen. It is the last link called “test skills” on the right.
Write down your test score here: ___________