Seafloor Spreading

An Evidence to Continental Drift Theory

Congratulations
(BUT)
•Prayer
 •Recall

Who theorized Continental Drift Theory?

What is the name of the single landmass that is said to be the
origin of the current 7 continents?
What are the 2 evidences for the continental drift theory?
Questions:
1.What will happened if
you drop coins in the coin
pusher machine?
2. At which spot where the
older coin (relative to their
stay inside the machine)
stays?
Seafloor Spreading
Harry Hammond Hess

One of the scientists to use

SONAR to study the ocean
floor during the World War
II. He is a professor of
geology at Princeton
University (USA)
• SONAR (Sound, Navigation, and Ranging)
 •Seafloor Spreading
• Seafloor spreading is a geologic process in which
lithospheric split apart from each other
• Seafloor spreading is what happens at the mid-oceanic
ridge where a divergent boundary is causing two
plates to move away from one another resulting in
spreading of the sea floor. As the plates move apart,
new material wells up and cools onto the edge of the
plates.
•Seafloor Spreading
 •Seafloor Spreading
• Hot, less dense material below the Earth’s crust rises
towards the mid-ocean ridge.
• This material flows sideways carrying the seafloor away
from the ridge and creates a crack in the crust
• The magma flows out of the crack, cools down and
becomes the new Seafloor.
• Overtime, the new oceanic crust pushed the old oceanic
crust far from the ridge and subducted.
• Evidences of Seafloor Spreading
• Oldest rocks are found far from
the ridge
• Seafloor is spreading and new
crust is being created at the
ridge.
• Sediments near the ridge are
thinner and progressively
thickens as you move away
• The age, density, and thickness
of oceanic crust increases with
distance from the mid-oceanic
ridge
 •Assignment

Research how seafloor spreading and subduction helps

the shape of the Earth remains constant