The composition of the earth’s interior ACCORDING TO THE PLATE TECTONICS THEORY, THE
The crust UPPERMOST MANTLE, ALONG WITH THE OVERLYING
The thinnest and the outermost layer of the CRUST, BEHAVES AS A STRONG, RIGID LAYER CALLED
earth that extends from the surface to about 32 THE LITHOSPHERE.
kilometers below. The earth’s crust is
subdivided into two regions: the continental
crust and the oceanic crust.
Properties Continental Oceanic
crust crust
Thickness 35 to 40 km 7 to 10
(found under km
land masses (found in
the ocean
floor)
Age of rocks Old Young A MAP SHOWING A DIFFERENT LITHOSPHERIC PLATES.
Density 2.7 g/cm3 3.0 g/cm3 WE CAN SEE DIFFERENT GEOLOGIC OCCURRENCES.
Types of Granite Basalt MOST OF THESE GEOLOGIC OCCURENCES HAPPEN AT
rocks rocks THE SAME PLACE, AND THESE PLACES ARE CALLED THE
PLATE BOUNDARIES.
The mantle
PLATE BOUNDARIES ARE THE LINES AT THE EDGES OF
Beneath the crust is the mantle, which extends THE DIFFERENT PIECES OF THE LITHOSPHERE.
to about 2900 kilometers from the earth’s
surface.
The high temperature and pressure in the
mantle allow the solid rock to flow slowly.
The crust and the uppermost part of the mantle
form a relatively cool, outermost rigid shell
called lithosphere and is about 50 to 100
kilometers thick. These lithospheric plates move
relative to each other.
Beneath the lithosphere lies the soft, weak layer
known as the asthenosphere, made of hot
molten material. Its temperature is about 300-
800 0C. The upper 150 km of the asthenosphere CONVERGENT BOUNDARIES FORM WHERE
has a temperature enough to facilitate a small TWO PLATES MOVE TOGETHER.
amount of melting and make it capable to flow. DIVERGENT BOUNDARIES (ALSO CALLED
This property of the asthenosphere facilitates SPREADING CENTERS) ARE THE PLACE WHERE
the movement of the lithospheric plates. TWO PLATES MOVE APART.
TRANSFORM FAULT BOUNDARIES ARE
The core MARGINS WHERE TWO PLATES GRIND PAST
The core is subdivided into two layers: the inner EACH OTHER WITHOUT THE PRODUCTION OR
and the outer core DESTRUCTION OF THE LITHOSPHERE
Outer Inner
core core CONVERGENT PLATE BOUNDARY
Distance below 2900 km 5150 km PLATES IS MOVING TOWARDS FROM EACH
the earth’s surface OTHER.
Temperature 2000 0C 5000 0C IT IS SOMETIMES CALLED A COLLISION
BOUNDARY OR A DESTRUCTIVE BOUNDARY,
WHICH MEANS ONE PLATE WILL GO DOWN THE
OTHER PLATE.
TYPES OF CONVERGENT BOUNDARY IT LEADS TO THE FORMATION OF MOUNTAIN
RANGE AND SHALLOW EARTHQUAKE.
A. OCEANIC-CONTINENTAL CONVERGENT PLATE
BOUNDARIES
OCEANIC PLATE IS FORCED DOWN INTO THE
MANTLE IN A PROCESS KNOWN AS
“SUBDUCTION”
SUBDUCTION – THE PROCESS WHERE ONE
PLATE GOES UNDER ANOTHER PLATE AND
SINKS INTO THE MANTLE.
MANTLE – THE LAYER BENEATH THE EARTH’S
CRUST COMPOSED OF HOT MOLTEN
MATERIALS.
THE SUBDUCTED LEADING EDGE OF THE
OCEANIC CRUST WILL BE MELTED FORMING DIVERGENT PLATE BOUNDARY
MAGMA
MAGMA - HOT MOLTEN ROCKS IN THE MANTLE DIVERGENT PLATE BOUNDARY IS WHEN THE
MAGMA RISE AND REACH THE EDGE OF THE LITHOSPHERIC PLATES ARE MOVING APART
CONTINENTAL CRUSTAL PLATE FORMING FROM EACH OTHER.
VOLCANIC ARC IT IS ALSO CALLED A CONSTRUCTIVE PLATE
THE OCCURRENCE OF SUBDUCTION ZONE GIVES BOUNDARY. SINCE THE PLATES ARE MOVING
RISE TO THE FORMATION OF VOLCANIC ARC, AWAY FROM EACH OTHER, THE MAGMA WILL
EARTHQUAKES AND TRENCHES COME OUT OF THE MIDDLE AND WILL
SUBDUCTION ZONE – THE REGION OR AREA PRODUCE NEW SEAFLOOR OR NEW PIECE OF
WHERE SUBDUCTION OCCURS LITHOSPHERE.
TRENCH – IS A DEPRESION WHICH MARKS THE IF THE DIVERGENT MOVEMENT IS HAPPENING
BOUNDARY OF TWO PLATES LOCATED IN THE OCEANIC PLATES, IT CAN LEAD TO THE
PARALLEL TO THE VOLCANIC ARC. FORMATION OF AN OCEANIC RIDGE AND RIFT
VALLEY.
OCEANIC RIDGE IS AN UNDERWATER
MOUNTAIN RANGE, FORMED BY PLATE
TECTONICS.
B. OCEANIC-OCEANIC CONVERGENT PLATE
BOUNDARIES
THE OLDER OCEANIC CRUST WILL UNDERGO
SUBDUCTION
THE OCCURRENCE OF SUBDUCTION ZONE GIVES
RISE TO THE FORMATION OF VOLCANIC ISLAND
ARCS, EARTHQUAKE AND TRENCHES. TYPES OF DIVERGENT BOUNDARIES
A. CONTINENTAL-CONTINENTAL
OCCURS WHEN TWO PLATES OF CONTINENTAL
MOVE AWAY FROM ONE ANOTHER AS THE
MAGMA RISES NEW LITHOSPHERE IS CREATED.
AS CONTINENTAL PLATES START TO MOVE
APART, THE CRUST WILL START THINNING AND
DEVELOPS A CONTINENTAL RIFT VALLEY. THE
CONTINENTAL RIFT VALLEY WILL DEVELOP INTO
NARROW SEA, AND THEN INTO A WIDE OCEAN.
C. CONTINENTAL-CONTINENTAL CONVERGENT PLATE
BOUNDARIES
A COLLISION IS FORMED
THE CREATION OF A LINEAR SHAPED LOWLAND
BETWEEN OCEANIC RIDGES WILL DEVELOP
CALLED RIFT VALLEY.
DIVERGENT PLATE BOUNDARY IS WHEN PLATES
MOVE APART FROM EACH OTHER FORMING
MID-OCEANIC RIDGES, RIFT VALLEYS, AND
SHALLOW EARTHQUAKES.
TRANSFORM FAULT PLATE BOUNDARY
B. OCEANIC-OCEANIC DIVERGENT BOUNDARIES TWO PLATES SLIDE PAST ONE ANOTHER
OCCUR WHERE TWO OCEANIC PLATES MOVE WITHOUT THE PRODUCTION OR DESTRUCTION
AWAY FROM ONE ANOTHER, THIS IS WHERE OF THE LITHOSPHERE
SEAFLOOR SPREADING TAKES PLACE THE MOST IT IS ALSO CALLED CONSERVATIVE
COMMON EXAMPLE IS THE MID-OCEAN RIDGE. BOUNDARIES. THE LITHOSPHERE IS NEITHER
IT CAN LEAD TO THE FORMATION OF AN CREATED NOR DESTROYED, INSTEAD ROCKS
OCEANIC RIDGE AND RIFT VALLEY. ARE DISPLACED ALONG THE SHEARING ZONE.
THE OCEANIC RIDGE OCCURS WHEN AT THE SHEARING ZONE SHALLOW
CONVECTION CURRENTS RISE IN THE MANTLE EARTHQUAKES HAPPEN FREQUENTLY, MASSIVE
BENEATH THE OCEANIC CRUST AND CREATE ROCKS ARE TORN APART AND DISPLACED TEN
MAGMA WHERE TWO TECTONIC PLATES MEET TO HUNDRED MILES AWAY ALONG THIS AREA
AT A DIVERGENT BOUNDARY. TRANSFORM BOUNDARIES AND THE RESULTING
FAULTS PRODUCE MANY EARTHQUAKES
BECAUSE EDGES OF TECTONIC PLATES ARE
JAGGED RATHER THAN SMOOTH.
THE FRACTURE ZONE THAT FORMS A
TRANSFORM PLATE BOUNDARY IS KNOWN AS A
TRANSFORM FAULT.
MOST TRANSFORM FAULTS ARE FOUND IN THE
OCEAN BASIN
TYPES OF TRANSFORM FAULT PLATE BOUNDARIES
A. OCEANIC-OCEANIC TRANSFORM FAULT
BOUNDARIES
AS PLATES CONTINUE TO MOVE APART, AN
UPLIFTED OCEAN FLOOR WILL DEVELOP IN
BOTH SIDES OF THE PLATES WHICH IS CALLED
OCEANIC RIDGE.
TRANSFORM FAULT IS IN CONTACT BETWEEN
TWO PLATES THAT SLIDE HORIZONTALLY PAST
ONE ANOTHER, COMMONLY CONNECTING
TWO MID OCEAN RIDGES
A TRANSFORM FAULT IS FORMED BETWEEN
TWO DIFFERENT PLATES, EACH MOVING AWAY
FROM THE SPREADING CENTER OF A
DIVERGENT PLATE BOUNDARY.
HOT MANTLE RISES AND FORMS MAGMA AT
THE BASE OF THE PLATES
MAGMA AND ERUPTED LAVA FLOWS CREATE
NEW OCEANIC PLATE. PLATES MOVE AWAY
FROM THE RIDGE.
OFFSET SPREADING RIDGES ARE CONNECTED BY
TRANSFORM FAULTS.
NEW PLATE COOLS AWAY FROM RIDGE. THE
RED ONE ARE WARMEST AT RIDGE. THE GREEN
ONE ARE THE COOLER ROCKS.
B. CONTINENTAL-CONTINENTALL TRANSFORM FAULT
BOUNDARIES
THE PACIFIC PLATE HAS BEEN GRINDING
HORIZONTALLY PAST THE NORTH AMERICAN
PLATE FOR 10 MILLION YEARS, AT AN AVERAGE
RATE OF ABOUT 5 cm/YR.
