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plate tectonics
science vocab.
Term | Definition |
---|---|
continental drift | Wegener's idea that the continents slowly moved over time. |
Pangaea | one big supercontinent |
fossil | any trace of an ancient organism that has been preserved in rock. |
mid-ocean ridge | mountain ranges in the middle of some ocean floors. |
sea-floor spreading | when mid-ocean ridges continually add new material to the ocean floor. |
deep-ocean trench | deep underwater canyons. |
plates | when Earth's lithosphere is broken into pieces separated by cracks. |
divergent boundary | plates move apart. |
convergent boundary | plates come together |
transform boundary | plates slip past each other |
plate tectonics | plate motions in a single theory. |
faults | breaks in Earth's crust where rocks have slipped past each other. |
rift valley | a deep valley |