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Plate Tectonics
Earth Science, Plate Tectonics, Chapter 10
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| continental drift | hypothesis that a single large landmass broke up into smaller landmasses to form the continents, which then drifted to their present locations |
| mid-ocean ridge | a long, undersea mountain chain that has a steep, narrow valley at the center, the forms as magma rises from the asthenosphere and creates new oceanic lithosphere (sea floor) as tectonic plates move apart |
| sea-floor spreading | the process by which new oceanic lithosphere (sea floor) forms when magma rises to Earth's surface at mid-ocean ridges and solidifies, as older, existing sea floor moves away from the ridge |
| Alfred Wegener | German scientist that proposed the idea of continental drift |
| supercontinent | large landmass |
| plate tectonics | the theory that explains how large pieces of the lithosphere, called plates, move and change shape |
| lithosphere | the solid, outer layer of Earth that consists of the crust and the rigid upper part of the mantle |
| asthenosphere | the solid, plastic layer of the mantle beneath the lithosphere |
| divergent boundary | the boundary between tectonic plates that are moving away from each other |
| convergent boundary | the boundary between tectonic plates that are colliding |
| transform boundary | the boundary between tectonic plates that are sliding past each other horizontally |
| tectonic plates | large pieces of lithosphere |
| oceanic crust | the more-dense piece of lithosphere that lies below oceans |
| continental crust | the less-dense piece of lithosphere that lies below continents |
| earthquake | the sudden movement of tectonic plates |
| volcano | a vent in Earth's surface through which magma and gases erupt |
| rift valley | the valley that forms as tectonic plates move away from each other |
| subduct | to sink or dive below, the more-dense plate subducts under the less-dense plate |
| subduction zone | the boundary between plates where one plate subducts under the other |
| convection | transfer of energy by moving matter |
| rifting | the process by which Earth's crust breaks apart |
| Pangaea | supercontinent that formed 300 million years ago and began to break up 200 million years ago |
Created by:
jrobinson214
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