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Plate tectonics
semester exam
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Pangaea | all the continents were once part of a supercontinent. |
| Continental drift | suggested that continents are in constant motion on the surface of earth. |
| Mid-ocean Ridge | the mountain ranges in the middle of the oceans. |
| seafloor spreading | the process by which new oceanic crust forms along a mid-ocean Ridge and older oceanic crust moves away from the ridge. |
| plate tectonics | Earth's surface is made of ridge slabs of rocks, or plates, that move with respect to each other. |
| lithosphere | the cold and rigid outermost layer. |
| divergent plate boundary | forms where two plates seperate. |
| transform plate boundary | forms where two plates slide past each other. |
| convergent plate boundary | form where two plates collide. |
| subduction | the denser plate sinks below the more buoyant plate in a process. |
| convection | the circulation of material caused by differences in temperature and density. |