Plate Tectonics Flashcards
What are tectonic plates?
Answer: Tectonic plates are large sections of the Earth’s lithosphere that move and interact at their boundaries.
How do divergent boundaries differ from convergent boundaries?
Answer: Divergent boundaries occur where plates move apart
while convergent boundaries occur where plates move toward each other.
What geological features are associated with transform boundaries?
Answer: Transform boundaries are characterized by earthquakes and fault lines.
How does the movement of tectonic plates provide evidence for continental drift?
Answer: The fit of continents
fossil distribution
What distinguishes oceanic plates from continental plates?
Answer: Oceanic plates are denser and thinner
while continental plates are thicker and less dense.
What happens when an oceanic plate collides with a continental plate?
Answer: The denser oceanic plate is subducted beneath the continental plate
often forming trenches and volcanic activity.
How is new oceanic crust formed at mid-ocean ridges?
Answer: Magma rises from below the Earth’s crust at mid-ocean ridges
cools
What occurs when oceanic crust reaches a trench?
