plate tectonics and faults vocab Flashcards
asthenosphere
A weak plastic layer of the mantle situated below the lithosphere
the rock within the zone is easily deformed
Core
The innermost layer of earth, located beneath the mantle, the court is divided into an outer core and inner core
lithosphere
The rigid outer layer of earth, including the crust and upper mantle
inner core
The solid innermost layer of earth, about 1220 km in radius
magma
A body of molten rock found at depth, including any dissolved gases and crystals
mid ocean ridge
A continuous elevated zone on the floor of all the major ocean basins and varying in width from 1000 to 4000 km
The rifts at the crests of ridges represent divergent plate boundary’s
Pangea
The proposed supercontinent that 200 million years ago begin to break apart inform the present landmasses
Continental drift
A hypothesis that originally proposed that the continents had once been join to form a single supercontinent
The supercontinent broken to pieces, which drifted into their present day positions
earthquake
The vibration of earth produced by the rapid release of energy
fault
A fracture in earth along which movement has occurred
convergent boundary
A boundary and which two plates move together
divergent boundary
A region where the rigid plates are moving apart, typified by the oceanic ridges
seafloor spreading
The process by which plate tech tonic’s produces new oceanic lithosphere at ocean ridges
rift valley
deep faltered structure found the bong the axis of divergent plate boundary’s
rift valley can develop on the sea floor or on land
subduction zone
A destructive plate margin where oceanic crust is being pushed down into the mantle beneath a second plate
