Get Pogil Ish Plate Tectonics Answer Key

Divergent (Spreading):This is where two plates move away from each other. Molten rock from the mantle erupts along the opening, forming new crust. The earthquakes that occur along these zones, called spreading centers, are relatively small.

Here are the 7 major tectonic plates of the world in a bit more detail. Pacific Plate. The Pacific major plate is the largest which underlies the Pacific Ocean. ... North American Plate. ... Eurasian Plate. ... African Plate. ... Antarctic Plate. ... Indo-Australia Plate. ... South American Plate.

Plate tectonics is a scientific theory that explains how major landforms are created as a result of Earth's subterranean movements. The theory, which solidified in the 1960s, transformed the earth sciences by explaining many phenomena, including mountain building events, volcanoes, and earthquakes.

1 Answer. Plate tectonics is a theory because it provides an explanation of why and how segments of the earth move and cause earthquakes and mountains and volcanos.

Plate tectonics is the theory that Earth's outer shell is divided into large slabs of solid rock, called “plates,” that glide over Earth's mantle, the rocky inner layer above Earth's core. Earth's solid outer layer, which includes the crust and the uppermost mantle, is called the lithosphere.

The Earth's crust is not a solid shell. It is made up of thick, interconnecting pieces called tectonic plates that fit together like a puzzle. They move atop the underly- ing mantle, a really thick layer of hot flowing rock.

The theory of plate tectonics states that Earth's surface is made of rigid slabs of rock, or plates, that move with respect to each other. tectonic plates. Earth's tectonic plates are large pieces of lithosphere. These lithospheric plates fit together like the pieces of a giant jigsaw puzzle.