Plate Tectonics Flashcards
Is the inner core solid or liquid?
Solid
What is the inner core made of?
Iron and nickel
What is the outer core made of?
Molten iron and nickel
Why is the mantle important to plate tectonics?
- tectonic plates float on top of the mantle
- where convection occurs
- source of magma
What three types of rock make up the crust?
Igneous, metamorphic, an sedimentary
What moves on top of the asthenosphere?
Tectonic plates
What are the two types of crust?
Oceanic and continental
What are four pieces of evidence for continental drift?
1) glacial scars
2) close fit coastlines (puzzle pieces)
3) fossil species
4) coal deposits in America
What is pangaea
Super continent
Who discovered continental drift?
Alfred Wegener
What are the three ideas that make up plate tectonics?
1) continental drift
2) sea floor spreading
3) subduction
What happens at a divergent boundary?
Sea floor spreading
What is created from sea floor spreading?
New oceanic crust, mid ocean ridge
Two zones of tremendous volcanic activity?
Ring of fire and mid atlantic ridge zone
What is formed at a convergent boundary?
Most of the time a trench, volcanic mountains