Plate Tectonics Flashcards
The outermost shell of a rocky planet.
Crust
Layer of molten rock between the crust and core
Mantle
Made up of mostly Iron. Separated into the outer core (molten) and inner core (solid)
Core
The layer of rock that makes up the outer part of the Earth, including the crust and upper mantle (lithospheric plates)
Tectonic Plate
The theory that continents gradually drifted over time to their present positions.
Continental Drift Theory
A thin layer of Earth, about 150 miles thick, at the border between the mantle and the crust.
Asthenosphere
The process in which the hotter parts of a gas or liquid rise to the top and the cooler, denser parts sink.
Convection Current
When two tectonic plates come together.
Convergent Boundary
Uplift of crustal plates that form elevated landmasses.
Mountains
A vent or fissure in Earth’s surface through which magma and gases are expelled.
Volcanoes
When tectonic plates split apart.
Divergent Boundary
When tectonic plates slide past each other.
Transform Boundary
Breaks in the crust. The movement causes seismic waves which produces earthquakes.
Fault
A long ridge of underwater volcanoes between two diverging oceanic plates.
Mid-Ocean Ridge
A place where where one tectonic plate sinks under another and melts. Also forms a trench.
Subduction Zone
