click below
click below
Normal Size Small Size show me how
Plate Tectonics
Geology
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Plate Tectonics Theory | earth's crust is divided into plates that are floating on the mantle |
| Convection | Hot magma rises, cools, sinks, then rises again. Hot magma rises because it is less dense. Cold magma sinks because it is more dense. |
| Fossil | preserved remains of a once-living organism |
| Ice core | cylinder of ice drilled from a glacier or ice cap that provides evidence of how earth's climate has changed over time |
| Divergent boundary | boundary where two tectonic plates are moving away from one another; creates mid-ocean ridges |
| Convergent boundary | boundary where two tectonic plates are moving toward one another; creates trenches, volcanoes, and mountains. |
| Transform boundary | boundary where two tectonic plates are sliding past one another; creates earthquakes. |
| Law of Superposition | oldest rocks / fossils are on the bottom |