Plate Tectonics Flashcards
Crust
The outermost shell of a rock of a rocky planet.
Mantle
Layerof molten rock between the crust and the core
Core
madee up of mostly Iron. Seperated into the outer core (motlen) and inner core (Solid)
Tectonic Plate
The layer of rock that makes upnthe outer layer of the earth.
Continental drift theory
the thoery that continents gradually drifted over time to their present positions.
asthenosphere
a thin layer of the earth, about 150 miles thick, at the border between the mantle and the crust.
convection currents
the precess in which the hotter parts of a gas or liquid rise to the top and the cooler
convergent boundary
when two tectonic plates come together
mountains
uplift of crustal plates that elavated landmasses.
volcanos
a vent or fissures in Earth’s surface through which magma and gases are expelled.
Divegerent Boundary
When tectonic plates split apart.
Transfrom boundary
when tectonic plates slide past each other.
Fault
Breaks in the crust. The movement causes seismic waves which produces earthquakes.
Mid-ocean ridge
A long ridge of underater volcanoe between two diverging oceanic plates.
Subduction Zone
A place where one tectonic plate sinks under another and melts. Also formes a trench
