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Greenfield-Geology 2
Plate Tectonics and Plate Boundaries
Term | Definition |
---|---|
PLATE TECTONICS | the theory that solid plates move on top of a slowly flowing mantle. |
PLATE BOUNDARIES | the edges where different plates on Earth are touching. |
CONVERGE | to come together |
CONVERGENT BOUNDARY | a boundary at which two plates collide, causing mountain building or subduction. |
HIMALAYAS | a mountain range formed when the Indian plate collided with the Eurasian plate. |
SUBDUCTION | the process of one plate sliding under another. The denser plate is driven down into the mantle. |
RING OF FIRE | an area circling the edges of the Pacific Plate where large numbers of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur. |
OCEAN TRENCHES | deep valleys formed underwater in subduction zones. A trench marks the position at which a flexed subducting plate begins to dive beneath another plate. |
MARIANA TRENCH | deepest known part of the world's oceans. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, to the east of the Mariana Islands. |
DIVERGE | to separate |
DIVERGENT BOUNDARY | a boundary at which two plates are separating. As the plates move in opposite directions, magma bubbles up, forming new crust. |
MID-OCEAN RIDGE | an underwater mountain range that is almost 50,000 miles long. |
MID-ATLANTIC RIDGE | part of the Mid-Ocean Ridge located along the floor of the Atlantic Ocean. |
RIFT VALLEY | deep valley which runs down the middle of the Mid-Ocean Ridge. |
SEA FLOOR SPREADING | the idea that new seafloor crust forms at mid-ocean ridges and then spreads in opposite directions. The youngest rocks of the ocean floor are at the diverging boundary, moving outward. |
TRANSFORM BOUNDARY | a boundary in which two plates scrape and slide past each other. The San Andreas Fault is one such boundary. |