Alfred Wegener had a lot of evidence to support that the

continents had moved, but until the sea-floor data on the

age of the ocean floor was available in the 1960’s, no one
could figure out how it happened.
 What is making the seafloor
spread?
Convection Currents!

• In 1960, proposed as driving force to move continents

This data showed evidence related to Earth’s
Lithosphere
____________ (the solid outer layer of Earth made up of
Upper Mantle Crusts
the ______ _______ and both of the _________). It
showed that the Lithosphere was broken into chunks called
Tectonic Plates
________ ______ that are riding on top of the semi solid
Asthenosphere
layer of the Mantle called the ______________.

As the Magma in the Asthenosphere gets unevenly heated

the following pattern occurs:
Convection Currents
The next time you heat
anything like soup or water
in a pan you can watch the
convection currents
move in the liquid. When the
convection currents flow in
the asthenosphere they
also move the crust. The
crust gets a free ride with
these currents, like the cork
in this illustration.
When these 3 forces move the
plates, it creates 3 different types
of plate boundaries. The
boundaries are where the edges
of the plates move and they can
interact with each other in 3
different ways.
3 Types of Plate
Boundaries
Convergent Boundary
Plate boundaries are where the

edges
_________________ of 2 different tectonic

meet
plates ______________.

direction
Depending on the ___________________
each of the plates is moving, the boundaries
can be:
Plate Boundaries
Three types

• Convergent
• Divergent
• Transform
 Plate Boundaries
Convergent

Three
Types:
• Ocean-
continent
• Ocean-ocean

• Continent-
continent

• Plates are moving toward each other

• Crust is being destroyed
Convergent Boundary
When 2 plates move

toward
_______________________ each other
and the density of the 2 plates is the same,

upward
the plates are forced _________________

crack & fold behind the

and they _________________
plate boundaries.
Convergent Boundary
mountains cracks

boundary
This causes rock to build up along the

mountains
boundary forming __________________.

When the plate breaks,

earthquakes might also be felt.

____________________
Convergent Boundary
When 2 plates move

toward
_______________________ each other
and the density of the 2 plates is different,

more dense plate is pulled

the ____________

under the less dense plate.

Convergent Boundary
 Chain of
Volcanoes

Ru
= bb
HO ing
T /h
SP ea
O t
T

boundary Magma
 Chain of
Volcanoes

Ru
= bb
HO ing
T /h
SP ea
O t
T

boundary Magma
Volcano locations worldwide
Do you notice a pattern in the locations
of where earthquakes usually happen?

• Earthquake distribution matches plate boundaries

Convergent Boundary
 rubbing
As it sinks, _________________ between the

earthquakes
plates can cause __________________________
and can cause enough heat for the rock above it
to melt. 

Hot spots
This forms areas called _________________ and
if the magma rises up through cracks, it can

volcanoes
form ___________________________.
 New crust
Old Old
crust crust

Volcano

boundary
Magma
 Mid-Atlantic Ridge

Pacific-Antarctic Ridge Indian Ridge

 away
When plates move ___________from each

other & Magma/Lava

________________ oozes out of
the Mantle.

As the magma reaches the surface it forms

new crust volcanoes

______________, ________________,

Ridges (mountain chains)

and ____________________________.
Actual boundary
shape
fault

boundary
Transform Plate Boundaries
Examples

San Andreas Fault

Calexico,
California
Carrizo Plains, Central
California
 past each other 
When plates move _________

sideways
____________________, no crust is

formed or destroyed along the crack

fault
between them (called a ______________). 
 Evidence for Seafloor Spreading
World Seismicity

• Earthquake distribution matches plate boundaries

As the plates rub on each other, the friction

erosion and if they get stuck

causes ___________

for long periods of time, the pressure builds

earthquakes
up and can cause __________________.
 The Plate Tectonics Song
(sung to the tune of “The Macarena”)

• When the plates move together then you call

them CONVERGENT!
• When the plates move apart then you call them
DIVERGENT!
• When they move side by side then you call them
TRANSFORM!

HEY PLATE TECTONICS!!!

 MORE Flashcards-Practice!

• Try to name the flashcard

each of these matches!
 Outer Core

The liquid layer of the Earth that lies

beneath the mantle
Name this type of plate
boundary

Divergent
 The name of the material that flows
under pressure in the middle part of the
mantle.

Magma
Mantle

Diagram letter B
 Outer Core

Which of the layers of the Earth is liquid?

Temperature trend from
A to C

Decreases (Goes down)

 Inner Core

The solid, most dense layer of the Earth

Diagram letter A
 The process caused by
temperature differences in
the mantle that causes
magma to circulate.

Convection
Small particles of shattered rock and
magma that escape from a volcano
when it erupts.

Ash
Term used to describe the
edges of a tectonic plate.

Plate boundary
Oceanic Crust

This layer is the thinnest layer

of the Earth and has a density
of 2.9 g/cm3
Name this feature

Magma chamber
 Type of plate boundary
where the edges of plates
move AWAY from each
other.

Divergent
 This is what you call the area of active
volcanoes surrounding the Pacific ocean

Ring of Fire
Continental Crust

This layer is the 2nd thinnest, and has

the lowest density of 2.7 g/cm3
Name this feature

Fault
Outer Core

Diagram letter D
Lithosphere

Diagram Letter F
Type of plate boundary (s)
where Earthquakes happen.

Convergent & Transform

This is what you call a volcano that will
never erupt again

Extinct volcano
A block of Lithosphere moving around
the surface of the Earth.

Tectonic Plate
Magma that flows out of the vent, cools
and hardens on the
outside of a volcano.

Lava
 Type of plate boundary
where the edges of plates
move TOWARD each other.

Convergent
 Type of plate boundary
where the edges of plates
move SIDE BY SIDE along
side each other in opposite
directions.

Transform
 This is the term for the
opening in Earth’s crust that
channels magma up to the
surface

Vent
Pressure trend from
C to A

Increases (Goes up)

 Mantle

Which of the layers of the Earth

is solid, but part of the layer
flows under pressure?
Name this type of plate
boundary

Convergent
Asthenosphere

Diagram Letter G
This is what you call a volcano that is
not currently active, but could become
active again in the future.

Dormant volcano
Oceanic Crust

Diagram Letter E
Type of plate boundary (s)
where Volcanoes form.

Convergent & Divergent

Large piles of crust that build
up when 2 plates push into
each other.

Mountains
The process when one plate
sinks beneath another.

Subduction
Name this type of plate
boundary

Transform
 This is the part of the Earth that is
made of the flowing middle part of the
mantle.

The Asthenosphere
Continental Crust

Diagram Letter C
 Density

The ratio of the mass of a substance to

its volume; commonly expressed in
g/cm3
(How heavy something is for its size)
Mountains that form when
Magma rises out through
cracks in the crust and
hardens.

Volcanoes
Oblate Spheroid

A slightly flattened sphere; the almost

egg shape that Earth is in
Differentiation

The process by which the layers of the

Earth were sorted into layers based on
density due to gravity.
Because of the friction here, this
area is called a _____________

Hot spot
Density trend from
A to C

Decreases (Goes down)

The original supercontinent that Alfred
Wegener proposed existed 250 million
years ago.

Pangaea
 This is the part of the Earth that is
made of the solid upper part of the
mantle and both of the crusts above it.

The Lithosphere
 The hypothesis that states that the
continents once formed a single land
mass, broke up, and drifted to their
current locations.

Continental Drift
The theory that explains why & how the
continents move.

Plate Tectonics
This is what you call a volcano that has
recently erupted or is likely to erupt
again soon.

Active volcano
Type of plate boundary (s)
where non-volcanic
mountains form.

Convergent
Shaking of the Earth caused
by tectonic plates rubbing
together at the edges.

Earthquake