Plate Tectonics

Question 1

Earth’s crust and upper mantle are broken up into sections called

Answer 1

plates

Question 2

Plates “float” on top of the …

Answer 2

mantle

Question 3

What happens in the mantle that causes the plates to move?

Answer 3

Convection currents in the Earth’s mantle slowly move the plates

Question 4

How did plate tectonics affect the way Earth looked 150 mi lions years ago versus now?

Answer 4

Caused the plates to spread part.
New crust material is formed a the mid-ocean ridge, pushing the older rock to the sides, which pushed the continents apart.

Question 5

What is some evidence that Supports Continental Drift theory?

Answer 5

● Fossils of the same animals/plants are on different continents
● Land features match (coastline shape, mountain ranges)
● Evidence of past climates match up
● Movement detected from satellite images that continents move from 1-10 cm/yr

Question 6

Are the plates still moving?

Answer 6

YES!!! Anywhere from 1cm-10cm a year. Ex: North American plates moves approximately 2.5 cm a year

Question 7

What is the Ring of Fire?

Answer 7

Series of earthquakes and volcanoes that occur in “ring” around the Pacific ocean, along plate boundaries