{"id":51,"date":"2019-06-11T14:48:06","date_gmt":"2019-06-11T14:48:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/physicalgeology2ed\/chapter\/1-5-fundamentals-of-plate-tectonics\/"},"modified":"2021-12-07T19:27:04","modified_gmt":"2021-12-07T19:27:04","slug":"1-5-fundamentals-of-plate-tectonics","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/physicalgeology2ed\/chapter\/1-5-fundamentals-of-plate-tectonics\/","title":{"raw":"1.5 Fundamentals of Plate Tectonics","rendered":"1.5 Fundamentals of Plate Tectonics"},"content":{"raw":"

[pb_glossary id=\"1356\"]Plate tectonics[\/pb_glossary] is the model or theory that has been used for the past 60 years to understand and explain how the Earth works\u2014more specifically the origins of continents and oceans, of folded rocks and mountain ranges, of earthquakes and volcanoes, and of continental drift. Plate tectonics is explained in some detail in Chapter 10, but is introduced here because it includes concepts that are important to many of the topics covered in the next few chapters.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_48\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"250\"]\"\"<\/a> Figure 1.5.1 The components of the interior of the Earth (click on the image to see a full-size version).[\/caption]\r\n\r\nKey to understanding plate tectonics is an understanding of Earth\u2019s internal structure, which is illustrated in Figure 1.5.1. Earth\u2019s [pb_glossary id=\"1230\"]core[\/pb_glossary] consists mostly of iron. The outer core is hot enough for the iron to be liquid. The inner core\u2014although even hotter\u2014is under so much pressure that it is solid. The [pb_glossary id=\"1232\"]mantle[\/pb_glossary] is made up of iron and magnesium [pb_glossary id=\"1234\"]silicate[\/pb_glossary] minerals. The bulk of the mantle surrounding the outer core is solid rock, but is plastic enough to be able to flow slowly. The outermost part of the mantle is rigid. The [pb_glossary id=\"1214\"]crust[\/pb_glossary]\u2014composed mostly of granite on the continents and mostly of basalt beneath the oceans\u2014is also rigid. The crust and outermost rigid mantle together make up the [pb_glossary id=\"1212\"]lithosphere[\/pb_glossary]. The lithosphere is divided into about 20 [pb_glossary id=\"1210\"]tectonic plates[\/pb_glossary] that move in different directions on Earth\u2019s surface.\r\n\r\nAn important property of Earth (and other planets) is that the temperature increases with depth, from close to 0\u00b0C at the surface to about 7000\u00b0C at the centre of the core. In the crust, the rate of temperature increase is about 30\u00b0C every kilometre. This is known as the [pb_glossary id=\"1190\"]geothermal gradient[\/pb_glossary].\r\n\r\nHeat is continuously flowing outward from Earth\u2019s interior, and the transfer of heat from the core to the mantle causes convection in the mantle (Figure 1.5.2). This convection is the primary driving force for the movement of tectonic plates. At places where convection currents in the mantle are moving upward, new lithosphere forms (at ocean ridges), and the plates move apart (diverge). Where two plates are converging (and the convective flow is downward), one plate will be [pb_glossary id=\"1192\"]subducted[\/pb_glossary] (pushed down) into the mantle beneath the other. Many of Earth\u2019s major earthquakes and volcanoes are associated with convergent boundaries.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_49\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"500\"]\"The<\/a> Figure 1.5.2 Depiction of the convection in the mantle and it's relationship to plate motion[\/caption]\r\n\r\nEarth\u2019s major tectonic plates and the directions and rates at which they are diverging at sea-floor ridges, are shown in Figure 1.5.3.\r\n

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Exercise 1.2 Plate<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/header>\r\n

\r\n\r\nUsing either a map of the tectonic plates from the Internet or Figure 1.5.3 determine which tectonic plate you are on right now, approximately how fast it is moving, and in what direction. How far has that plate moved relative to Earth\u2019s core since you were born?\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_50\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"1024\"]\"\"<\/a> Figure 1.5.3 A map showing 15 of the Earth\u2019s tectonic plates and the approximate rates and directions of plate motions.[\/caption]\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nSee Appendix 3 for Exercise 1.2 answers<\/a>.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n

Media Attributions<\/h3>\r\n