Plate Tectonics Flashcards
Which is heavier? Granitic or basaltic rock?
Basaltic
Earths crust is divided into two different regions:
Continental crust (granite rock) and oceanic crust (basaltic rock)
The ______ floats on the molten ____
Lithosphere, asthenosphere
At convergent plate boundaries are called
Subduction zones
______ major tectonic plates
14
3 basic tectonic plate boundaries, with four different results
Divergent plate boundaries
Convergent plate boundaries –>
(They rub against each other)
Divergent boundaries
What classifies it? What’s the result?
Rising convection currents force plates apart.
Results is mid ocean ridges and rift valleys.
Transform boundaries
What classifies it?
Two plates slide past each other, like the San Andreas fault we are currently on.
How fast does the San Andreas fault move?
2 inches each year (like your fingernails)
Convergent boundaries
What classifies it? What are the two types
Plates moving toward each other.
1) subduction zone. (Ocean and continental plate causes volcanoes)
2) forms mountains
What is a caldera?
What is left from a volcanic eruption
The rock cycle
[metamorphic rock] (strong rock) >melting>magma>cooling>[igneous rock]> heat/pressure back to magma OR> weathering > erosion> transportation>deposition> [sedimentary rock] (weak rock) > heat pressure stress> [metamorphic rock]
How long ago is Pangea assumed to be?
250 million years ago
Tectonic movement: climatic effects
- changing position on earths surface, change of latitude
- movements alter ocean currents
- mountain formation alters air currents
What effect can earthquakes have on species?
Earthquakes can separate and isolate populations of species. Over time, this can lead to the formations of new species due to changes environmental conditions.
