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PSQ4W5ES
PLATE TECTONICS
Question | Answer |
---|---|
Plate tectonics | theory that explains how the plates move and create landforms; explains the occurrence and locations of earthquakes. |
Continental drift | hypothesis that the continents were once a single landmass and have moved; attempts to explain how some continents seem to fit together. |
Pangaea | name of the landmass that all the continents once made up according to continental drift theory |
Seafloor spreading | occurs when magma is pushed up through openings in the ocean floor. |
Trench | very deep valley on the ocean floor |
Mid ocean ridge | long, narrow region where the land is uplifted on the ocean floor |
Magnetic reversal | occurs when Earth's magnetic field switches; some magnetized rocks show north being south and south being north, showing a magnetic reversal . |
Plate boundaries | regions where two or more plates are next to one another |
Divergent plate boundaries | region where two plates are moving apart |
Rifting | spliting apart; occurs at divergent plate boundaries. |
Convergent plate boundaries | region where two plates are moving together; mountain ranges often occur along convergent plate boundaries . |
Subduction zone | region where a plate is pushed under another plate; occur along convergent plate boundaries. |
Transform plate boundaries | region where two plates are sliding past one another |
Convection current | movement of magma circulating in the asthenosphere; happens when hot material rises and cold material sinks. |