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TOPIC: Deformation of Earth’s Crust
I. Theory of Continental Drift
 It states that a giant landmass are slowly broke into
smaller land pieces, then eventually drifted away
from each other which made the seven continents.
 Seven Continents:
1. Asia 4. Europe
2. Africa 5. Antarctic
3. North America 6. Australia
4. South America
 In 1912, German meteorologist Alfred
Wegener proposed that in the beginning, the Earth
has only one giant landmass called Pangaea,
which means "all land”.
 Alfred Wegener presented the following pieces of
evidence to support his theory:
1. The continents fit together like a jigsaw
puzzle.
- This is most evident in the matching
coastlines of South America and Africa.
2. Similar animal and plant fossils were found in
different continents.
- The fossils of
reptile mesosaurus were found along the
coastlines of South America and Africa
which are separated by the Atlantic
Ocean.
- Moreover, the fossil of a fern- like
plant glossopteris was found distributed
in all the continents.
3. The rocks are of the same type and age.
- Geologic features such as mountain
ranges are found along matching
coastlines like that of the Appalachian
Mountains
4. Presence of coal in Antartica.
- Coal is produced from organic matter like
dead plants and animals. In a very cold
place like Antarctica, it would be
impossible for most organisms to survive.
- The presence of coal indicates that the
continent was once inhabited by many
organisms. It also gives a clue that
Antarctica was once located near the
equator where abundant animal and plant
organisms could be found.
5. Presence of Glacial Deposits.
- Tillites, which are deposits of rock debris
left by glaciers, were found in Africa,
South America, India, and Australia. They
were of the same age and type.
- The presence of tillites indicates that
those places had glaciers in the past, were
-
- once located near the South Pole, and
had drifted away from each other.
 In 1919, Sir Arthur Holmes, an English geologist,
proposed the presence of convection in the Earth’s
mantle.
 When the rocks in the Earth’s interior are heated by
radioactivity, they become less dense, and they rise
toward the surface of the Earth. When they cool down,
they become denser and sink.
 The continuous process of rising and sinking of rocks
produces mantle convection. These currents cause
the tectonic plates, which include the crust, to move and
drift.
II. Theory of Plate Tectonics
 It states that the Earth’s crust is divided into plates,
known as tectonic plates, and these plates move
due to the convection currents in the Earth’s
interior.
* Seven Major Plates * Seven Minor Plates
1. Pacific Plate 1. Philippine Plate
2. Eurasian Plate 2. Nazca Plate
3. African Plate 3. Arabian Plate
4. North American Plate 4. Caribbean Plate
5. South American Plate 5. Cocos Plate
6. Antarctic Plate 6. Juan de Fuca Plate
7. Australian-Indian Plate 7. Scotia Plate
 Plate Movements
- The movement of the plates depends on the
boundaries between them. These boundaries
can be convergent, divergent, or transform.
the a) Convergent Plate Boundary
- the plates move or collide to each other
caused by compressional stress.
b) Divergent Plate Boundary
- When the plates move away from each
other caused by tensional stress.
c) Transform Plate Boundary
- When plates slide past each other due to
shear stress.
 Fracture
- Since the pressure and temperature are
low at the Earth’s surface, rocks tend to
break or fracture when subjected to
compressional and tensional stresses.
- This means that the pressure exerted in
the blocks of rocks exceeds the rock's
internal strength.
- Fractures can either be a fault or a
joint. A fault is a break in the rock where
there is considerable movement on the
fracture surface while a joint is a break
where there is no considerable
movement.
 Two Types of Fault
1. Dip-slip Fault
- Dip-slip faults can either be a normal or a
reverse fault.
a) A normal fault is caused by tensional
stress it is characterized by the hanging
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wall moving downward with respect to the
footwall.
b) A reverse fault, wherein the hanging wall
moves upward, is formed by
compressional stress  New oceanic crust is formed from the outpouring
of the molten materials, and as the process
continues, oceanic ridges or underwater mountain
ranges are built.

 Oceanic ridges are composed of volcanic rocks.

 As the molten materials continuously flow out from

2. Strike-slip Fault
- Strike-slip fault involves a horizontal
movement of blocks of rock and is caused
by shear stress.
 Folds
- Deep within the crust, where pressure
and temperature are high, rocks are
plastic-like; thus, they do not break but
they tend to bend or fold.
- When rocks in this area are compressed,
they become thicker. When rocks
become thinner, they are pulled apart.
the ridges, the seafloor also keeps on spreading
forming a central valley, or a rift valley, at the
summit of the oceanic ridges.
 The molten materials push the seafloor away from
the ridges and towards the trenches. Trenches are
depressions on the ocean floor.
 Oceanic ridges are formed at divergent
boundaries, where plates move away from each
other;
 Trenches are formed at subduction zones
where plates collide with each other or
at convergent boundaries.

 Types of Fold
a) When blocks of rock are bent upwards, they
form anticline structures.
b) Synclines are formed when blocks of rock
bend downwards.
c) A slightly bent rock from the parallel
undeformed layers forms monoclines.

III. Theory of Seafloor Spreading

 It states that convection currents in the Earth’s
interior make the seafloor spread.
 Convection currents carry heat from the molten
materials in the mantle and core towards the
lithosphere
 It was proposed in 1960 by Harry Hess, an
American geophysicist.
 Because of seafloor spreading, the molten
materials flow out to form mid-oceanic ridges,
spread sideways to form seafloor, and disappear
into the ocean trenches.