PLATE MOTION

Lesson 2.5
Plate motions and the
interactions along plate
boundaries generate forces
that cause rocks to deform.

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Oldest continental rocks

⚫ They are 3.98 billion years old

⚫ They are dated by radioactivity.

⚫ This suggests that the continents and

oceans are probably permanent

features of Earth’s surface.

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

1. Continent Accretion Theory

⚫ Proponent: James Dwight Dana, a

19th century geologist

⚫ Proposed that the continents have

always been stationary with the

gradual addition of new materials
around a central nucleus
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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

2. Continental Assimilation Hypothesis

⚫ Explained how the ocean areas

accumulated the denser elements

then subsided to form basins

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

3. Expanding Earth Hypothesis

⚫ Stated that the present continents

split apart with the expansion of Earth,

and that the continents combined
could cover half of the current Earth’s
surface area

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents
4. Continental Drift Theory
⚫ Continental drift – is the gradual

movement of the continents over time

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents
Plates – large slabs sitting on a fluid
level of molten rock that makes up the
upper layer of the crust

⚫ Plate tectonics – the movement of the

lower molten layer which causes the
plates to shift

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

Continental Drift Theory

⚫ Proponent: Alfred Wegener, a German

geophysicst and meteorologist (1912)

⚫ Suggested that the continents were

originally all part of a huge landmass

called Pangaea that was surrounded
by a single ocean called Panthalessa
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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

⚫ Pangaea began to separate between

275 to 175 Ma

⚫ The current structure of the continents

was a product of a slow process of
fragmentation and drifting

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents
Supporting Evidences:
1. Discovery of closely-related
formation patterns of geological
structures on different continents

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

⚫ Mesosaurus – found in South America

and in Africa
⚫ Cynognathus – found in South

America and in Africa

⚫ Lystrosaurus – found in Antarctica,

India and South America

⚫ Glossopteris

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents
Supporting Evidences:
3. Paleomagnetism
⚫ This refers to fossils especially rocks

formed millions of years ago and

contain record of the direction of the
magnetic poles at the time of their
formation.

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

Plate Tectonics and Plate Movements

There are 7 major plates and dozens of

smaller plates that interact with
another in seven ways

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents
7 Major Plates
1. African Plate
2. Antarctic Plate
3. Eurasian Plate
4. Indo-Australian Plate
5. North American Plate
6. Pacific Plate
7. South American Plate 23
Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents
Largest Minor Plates
1. Arabian Plate
2. Carribean Plate
3. Cocos Plate
4. Juan de Fuca Plate
5. Nazca Plate
6. Philippine Plate
7. Scotia Plate 25
Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents
1. Divergent Boundary – occurs when 2
tectonic plates move away from each
other
Oceanic crust forms from solidified
magma that turns into basalt – a dark,
dense rock that underlies the ocean
floor

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents
2. Convergent Boundary – two plates
come together

Forms mountain ranges, trench or a

chain of volcanoes
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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents
3. Transform Boundary – two plates
sliding past each other
Forms a valley or canyon
Earthquakes rattle through a wide
boundary zone

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

5. Seafloor Spreading
⚫ It is a geologic process in which

tectonic plates split apart from each

other as a result of mantle convection

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

5. Seafloor Spreading
Mantle convection – the slow, churning
motion of Earth’s mantle

⚫ It carries heat from the lower mantle

and core to the lithosphere
⚫ It also recycle lithosphere materials
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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents
⚫ It occurs at divergent plate boundaries.
⚫ As tectonic plates move away from

one another, the heat from convection

currents makes the crust more plastic
and less dense.

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

⚫ Less dense materials rises, often

forming mountains or elevation on the
seafloor
⚫ Pressure causes the crust to crack

⚫ Hot magma fueled by mantle

convection bubbles up to fill these

fractures and spills onto the crust
forming basaltic rocks when cooled by 38
Theories on the Origin of the
Continents
Mid-ocean Ridges
⚫ Are large mountain ranges rising from

the ocean floor as a result of seafloor

spreading

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

Mid-ocean Ridges
⚫ Examples:

a. Mid-Atlantic Ridge – separates the

North American Plate from the
Eastern Plate, and the South
American Plate from the African Plate
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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

Mid-ocean Ridges
b. East Pacific Rise – runs through the
eastern Pacific Ocean, and separates 41
Theories on the Origin of the
Continents
Mid-ocean Ridges
c. Southeast Indian Ridge – marks
where the southern Indo-Australian
Plate forms a divergent boundary with
the Antarctic Plate

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Using magnetometers, scientists
discovered that the magnetism of the
ocean floor around mid-ocean ridges
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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

Ocean crust may sometimes encounter

an active plate margin.
They are often the site of earthquakes
and volcanoes.

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

Mid-ocean Ridges
Ocean crust created by seafloor
spreading in the East Pacific Rise, for 45
Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

Ocean crust encounters a passive plate

margin – areas where a single
tectonic plate transitions from oceanic
lithosphere to continental lithosphere.

Example: Mid-Atlantic Ridge either

becomes part of the passive margin
on the North American Plate or the 46
Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

It forms geographic features.

Example: the Red Sea was created as

the African Plate and Arabian Plate
moved away from each other.

Today, only the Sinai Peninsula

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents

Subduction is another part of plate

tectonics wherein it happens when the
tectonic plates crash into each other
instead of move apart.

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Theories on the Origin of the
Continents
The two forces (seafloor spreading and
subduction) roughly balance each
other, so the shape and diameter of
Earth remain constant.

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