1 plate tectonics notes geology – the study of the earth and its processes
TRANSCRIPT
1
Plate TectonicsNotes
Geology – the study of the Earth and its processes
2
The Earth’s Layers
Scientists study seismic (earthquake) waves and volcanic explosions to learn about the Earth’s interior.
Crust
Mantle
Outer Core
Inner Core
3
Crust– outermost layer– thinnest layer– the layer we live on– divided into pieces, called tectonic plates– two types: continental and oceanic crust
Mantle– thickest layer– “flows” and allows the tectonic plates to
move on top– primarily magma
The Earth’s Layers cont…
4
Outer Core– liquid
Inner Core– solid– dense, high pressure layer at the center
of the earth
The Earth’s Layers cont…
Core is made primarily of iron and
some nickel
5
Alfred Wegener
1912 - proposed that all the continents were once joined as a single landmass
–he called this “supercontinent” Pangaea
–stated the continents have separated and collided as they have moved over millions of years
–called his theory “continental drift”
Continental DriftSlide does not
need to be copied
6
Wegener’s 5 major pieces of Evidence:
1. Continents (esp. South America &
Africa) seem to fit together like pieces of a puzzle
2. Matching fossils occur on east coast of S. America & west coast of Africa
3. Matching folded mountain belts on coasts of S. America & Africa
7
Evidence cont…
4. Evidence of ancient climates show landmasses were once located elsewhere- Ex: glaciers in Africa !
5. Data for latitudes & longitudes of locations is changing
8
9
Wegener is debated
Other scientists argued that the continents could not just plow through the oceans
Later evidence revealed Wegener was correct – he just didn’t have the technology to prove how the continents had moved
Modern Theory = Plate Tectonics
The crust is made up of about a dozen major, moving plates and several smaller plates
Plates can contain:– land = continental crust– ocean = oceanic crust– Both !
10
Modern Evidence from the OceansScientists mapping the ocean floor found:
Underwater mountain chains
Ridges where the sea floor was actually spreading at sites called ridges Some oceans were growing wider from the
middle Fossils and other materials are moving
apart on either side of ridges Newer, younger crust was being created by
magma at the ridges11
12
Magnetic measurements of the crust Polarity (magnetic north vs. south)
changes every so many thousand years Magnetic rocks on the ocean floor show
reversals Rocks are in equal bands on either side
of the mid-ocean ridges
Modern Evidence cont…
13
What Moves the Plates? Convection currents are created as
heated rock rises to the surface, cools, and sinks again.
These currents carry the plates as if they are on a
conveyor belt in a process called “slab pull.”
14
Two different plates meet at a boundary.
There are 3 types of plate boundaries:
1. Convergent = where plates collide
2. Divergent = where plates are move apart
3. Transform = where plates move up against one another
15
Convergent Boundaries:
When these 2 pieces of crust collide, they buckle and push upwards, forming mountains = uplift occurs
Ex: Himalayas & Mount Everest
Type 1: continental / continental
16
continental crust
to draw & label:
Uplifted mountains
continental crust
17
Oceanic is denser, so it sinks at the trench between the plates = called the subduction zone
The melting of the oceanic crust forms new magma which is less dense than surrounding rock, so it rises, forming volcanoes
Ex: Mt. St. Helens
Type 2: continental / oceanic
17
18
continentalcrust
to draw & label:
oceaniccrust
trench
melting
volcanoes
the mantle
magma
19
The denser plate is subducted / sinks.
The melting of the crust forms new magma which will rise above the denser rock – as it cools,
it may pile up to form land
Ex: Hawaiian Islands & Japan
Type 3: oceanic / oceanic
20
to draw & label:
oceaniccrust
trench
melting
land & volcanoes
the mantle
magma
oceaniccrust
21
Hot Spots In several places on earth, hot magma
moves upwards through the crust
As a plate moves over this source of magma, volcanoes form at the hot spot.
As the plate continues to move, a chain of volcanoes of differing ages forms
22
Divergent Boundaries: The area where 2 plates are
moving away from one another is called a rift zone.
Magma will rise up to fill the gap, cool, and harden to form new crust.
When this happens in the ocean, the process is called sea-floor spreading.
23
Ex: Mid-ocean ridge in the Atlantic – note: the youngest crust will be found in these areas
Ex: Great Rift Valley in Africa – note: the inland sea that resulted
23
24
to draw & label:
oceaniccrust
the mantlemagma
oceaniccrust
mid-ocean ridgesea-floor spreading
25
to draw & label:
continentalcrust
subsidence
continentalcrust
rift zone
step 1
step 2
inland sea
26
Transform Boundaries:
Two plates may grind and jerk as they slide past one another.
The boundary where they meet is called a fault line.
The stressful movement often results in earthquakes.
27
Ex: San Andreas Fault
Transform Boundary
to draw & label:
28
continent
ocean
AB
C
D
1. Feature _____ is an ocean trench.
2. Feature _____ is undergoing subduction.
3. Feature _____ is part of the continental crust.
4. Feature _____ is part of the mantle.
5. Feature _____ is part of the oceanic crust.
For discussion:
29
The “Ring of Fire”- A large number of the world’s
volcanoes and earthquakes occur around the edges of the Pacific plate
For discussion: