PLATE TECTONICS

GEOLOGY LITHOSPHERE
- Studies the structure of the earth origin - It is also known as the tectonic plate of
and development. crustal plate.
- It consists of the layers of the crust and
the upper part of the mantle (continental
MAJOR LAYERS OF THE EARTH and oceanic crust).
- The thickness is about 50-100km and
CRUST these lithospheric plates move relative to
- The thinnest and outermost part/layer of each other.
the earth that is brittle and rocky. - The entire lithosphere of the earth is
- It is made of low mass elements such as broken into numerous segments called
silicone, oxygen, and made of variety of plates.
solid rocks like sedimentary,
metamorphic, and igneous rocks.
- The least dense layer of the geosphere KINDS OF CRUST
with an average density of 28g/cm^3
CONTINENTAL CRUST
and thickness that ranges from 5-50km.
- It is four times thicker than the oceanic
crust but less dense (35-40km). It is
MANTLE made of granite and are located on land.

- It is the thickest middle layer beneath

the crust.
OCEANIC CRUST
- This extends about 2900km from the
earth’s surface, and it makes up about - These are crusts under oceans and are
80% of the earth’s total volume and 68% made of Fe, Mg, and basalt. It is
of its total mass. relatively thinner but denser than the
- It is mainly made of silicate and molten continental crust (7-10km).
rocks.

CORE
- It is a dense metallic center of earth that
is made of mostly Fe with small
amounts of Ni and other elements.
- It is subdivided into two layers, the
liquid outer core and solid inner core.
- Inner Core is a dense ball of solid iron
crystals and nickel. It has a radius of
1300km.
- Outer Core is liquid that is made up of
molten iron and nickel. It is 2900km
below the earths surface and is 2250km
thick.
7 LARGE PLATES

 Eurasian Plate S-WAVES

 Pacific Plate
- Elastic waves or secondary waves are
 Antarctic Plate two main types of elastic body waves.
 Australian Plate They move through the body of an
 North American Plate object.
 South American Plate
 African Plate E
PI
C
E
SEVERAL SMALLER PLATES
N
 Philippine Plate T
 Arabian Plate E
 Indian Plate R
 Cocos Plate
 Nazca Plate
 Scotia Plate
 Juan De Fuca Plate
 Caribbean Plate

A theory of moving lithospheric or tectonic

plates produce earthquakes, mountains, and
volcanoes.

EARTHQUAKE
- A seismic event caused by the sudden
release of energy stored in the earth’s
crust. The explosion causes vibration
which can emit up to several meters of
displacement and it releases the heat the
warms the surrounding areas.

P-WAVE
- It travels faster than other seismic waves
and hence, are the first signal from an
earthquake to arrive at any affected
location or at a seismograph. P-waves
may be transmitted through gases,
liquids, or solids.
 - The part of the earth’s surface directly - Most divergent boundaries are situated
above the focus of an earthquake. along underwater mountain ranges
called oceanic ridges.
- As the plate separates, hot materials or
HYPOCENTER magma ooze up
- An example of a mid-ocean ridge is the
- The focus of the earthquake/point of Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The Atlantic Ocean
origin of the earthquake. is also the 2nd largest ocean.

In

SEISMOLOGY continental crusts, it produces a Rift Valley. The

crust breaks down that form a down faulted
- The study of earthquakes and seismic valley.
waves that move through around the
earth.
EXAMPLES OF DIVERGENT PLATE
BOUNDARIES
SEISMOGRAPH
 Antarctic Plate and Australian Plate
- Used to record the motion of the ground  South American Plate and African Plate
during an earthquake.  North American Plate and Eurasian
SEISMOGRAM Plate
 Pacific Plate and Antarctic Plate
- Determines the location and magnitude  Pacific Plate and Nazca Plate
of earthquakes.

The Mariana Trench is the deepest oceanic

TYPES OF PLATE BOUNDARIES trench on Earth. It is in the western Pacific
There are three distinct types of plate Ocean.
boundaries, which are differentiated by the type Red Sea is formed by Arabia splitting from
of movement they exhibit. Africa due to continental drift. The sea is still
widening, and it is considered that the sea will
come an ocean in time. The Red Sea started with
DIVERGENT PLATE BOUNDARY <- -> just a narrow strip of water.
- Two plates are moving away from each
other, creating a zone of tension.
CONVERGENT PLATE BOUNDARY -> <-
 - Two plates are moving towards each Shear Zone are shallow earthquakes that
other creating a collision zone where happen. Frequently, massive rocks are torn
the plates collide. apart and displaced tens to hundred miles away
- Converge mean to meet or collide. along this area.
- The Lithosphere at one plate subducts
beneath the second plate and melt,
then becoming part of the mantle. TYPES OF TRANSFORM PLATE
BOUNDARIES
OCEANIC TRANSFORM FAULT
Subduction is the bending of the crust towards
BOUNDARY
the mantle and melts forming magma. Subducts
means to go down because it is heavier or - Most of the transform fault boundaries
denser than the other. It creates volcanoes, occur at the ocean basins.
trenches, mountains, and earthquakes. - The Caribbean Plate is sliding East-
Northeast about 0.8 inches (2cm) per
year relative to the North American
One of the results of the convergence or Plate.
collision of two oceanic plates is the formation - Virgin Islands National Park is a
of the Philippine Archipelago. The Philippine sheared-up landscape forming as the
Archipelago is a oceanic-oceanic plate. Caribbean Plate sides eastward past the
oceanic part of the North American
Plate.
EXAMPLES OF CONVERGENT PLATE
BOUNDARIES
CONTINENTAL TRANSFORM FAULT
 Philippine Plate and Eurasian Plate BOUNDARY
 Nazca Plate and South American Plate
 South American and Antarctic Plate - There are only a few gliding continental-
 Pacific Plate and Australian Plate continental boundaries.
- When continental-continental transform
fault boundaries happen, earthquakes
occur frequently and may result to the
TRANSFORM FAULT BOUNDARY
formation of fault along the linear or
- Two plates slide or grind past each narrow valley like the San Andreas
other without diverging or converging. Fault of California which has been
- The fracture zone that forms a formed due to the gliding plates of
transform plate boundary is known as a Pacific and North American.
transform fault. - The Pacific Plate carries little
- Most transform faults are found in the continental crust.
ocean basin.
San Andreas Fault is known as the Big One
and it is 10 miles deep and ¼ mile wide. It
was responsible not only for destructive
Conservative Type is the lithosphere that is earthquakes, but also for the spectacular
neither created nor destroyed. Instead, rocks scenery of the San Francisco Bay Area and
are displaced along the shearing zone. other coastal regions of California.
 The Alpine Fault is a transform boundary
between the Pacific Plate and the Indo-
Australian Plate.

RESULT OF TRANSFORM FAULT

BOUNDARIES

 Shallow earthquakes
 No magma
 No volcanoes
 No rift valleys
 Narrow linear fault at earth’s surface
Unlike the depictions in some movies,
movement along transform plate boundary
doesn’t generate a gap or chasm at the earth’s
surface.

INTRAPLATE
THE EARTH’S MECHANISM These fossils were in the continents of
Southern Africa, Australia, India, and
CONTINENTAL DRIFT
Antarctica, which are now separated
- In 1912, Alfred Wegener, a German from each other by wide oceans. The
meteorologist, proposed a theory that large seeds of this plant could not
about 200 million years ago, the possibly travel a long journey by the
continents were once a large landmass. wind or survive a rough ride through
He called this landmass Pangea, a ocean waves.
Greek word which means all earth. - Mesosaurus and Lystrosaurus are
- This Pangea started to break into two freshwater reptiles. Fossils of these
small supercontinents called Laurasia animals were discovered in different
and Gondwanaland during the Jurassic continents, such as in South America
Period. These smaller supercontinents and Africa. It is impossible for these
broke into the continents and these reptiles to swim over the vast oceans
continents separated and drifted apart and move from another to one continent.
since then. Fossils were also found in Antarctica.
- Wegener searched for evidence to
support his claim. He noticed the fit of
the edges of the continents on the ROCKS
opposite sides of the South Atlantic. His
- Fossils found in rocks support the
evidence to the Continental Drift Theory
Continental Drift Theory. The rocks
includes the distribution of fossils in
themselves also provide evidence that
different continents, rock features, and
continents drifted apart from each other.
ancient climates.
- Africa fit South America. Rock
formations in Africa line up with that in
South America as if it was a long
EVIDENCE
mountain range. The folded cape
THE CONTINENTAL JIGSAW PUZZLE mountains of South America and Africa
line up perfectly like there were one a
- The most visible and fascinating long mountain range.
evidence that these continents were once
on is their shapes. The edge of one
continent surprisingly matches the edge
of another; South America and Africa fit
together; India, Antarctica, and Australia
match one another; Eurasia and North
America complete the whole continental
puzzle in the north.

FOSSILS
- Fossils are preserved remains or traces
of organisms (plants & animals) from
the remote past.
- Fossilized leaves of a Glossopteris were
found in 250 million years old rocks.