Sea-Floor Spreading

OBJECTIVES
Define seafloor
spreading
Describe how the
seafloor spreads
 video clip
Sea-Floor Spreading
Sea-Floor Spreading
Sea-Floor
Spreading –
Harry Hess in
the 1960’s; the
process that
continually
adds new
material to the
ocean floor
while pushing
older rocks
away from the
ridge
Sea-Floor Spreading
Sea-Floor Spreading
Subduction –
Process by
which the ocean
floor sinks
beneath a deep-
ocean trench
and back into
the mantle;
allows part of
the ocean floor
to sink back
into the mantle
Sea-Floor Spreading
Sea-Floor Spreading
 Mid-Ocean Ridge – the longest chain
of mountains in the world---these are
divergent plate boundaries.
 Ocean floor moves like a conveyor belt
carrying continents with it.
 New ocean floor forms along cracks in
the ocean crust as molten material erupts
from the mantle spreading out and
pushing older rocks to the sides of the
crack. New ocean floor is continually
added by the process of sea-floor
spreading.
ACTIVITY:
Guide Questions:
What do the stripes in the paper represent?
What does the middle slit represent? What occurs in
this region?
What is the role of the mid–ocean ridge in the
movement of lithospheric plates?
How does the new seafloor form at the mid-ocean
ridge?
What process/es happen at the side slits?
Is the earth getting larger and wider when plates drift
away from each other? Explain briefly.
Sea-Floor Spreading:
Subduction zone
Deep-Ocean
Trench –
Occurs at
subduction
zones. Deep
underwater
canyons form
where oceanic
crust bends
downward
Sea-Floor Spreading
1. Evidence from
Molten Material –
Rocks shaped like
pillows(rock pillows)
show that molten
material has
erupted again and
again from cracks
along the mid-ocean
ridge and cooled
quickly
Sea-Floor Spreading
2. Evidence from
Magnetic Stripes
– Rocks that
make up the
ocean floor lie in
a pattern of
magnetized
stripes which
hold a record of
the reversals in
Earth’s magnetic
field
How the seafloor got it’s
stripes!
Sea-Floor Spreading
3. Evidence
from Drilling
Samples – Core
samples from the
ocean floor show
that older rocks
are found farther
from the ridge;
youngest rocks are
in the center of
the ridge
 Recycling process taking
place – as more magma
rises, the present sea floor
is pushed aside.
 At plate boundaries, the
cold and denser rock sinks
and melts, becoming
magma once again.
 Paleomagnetism is a proof that
supports sea floor spreading.
Earth is a giant magnet. It tells
us how far from the poles rocks
were when they formed by
looking at the angle of their
magnetic field.
The Earth acts like a giant magnet
because of it’s metallic core!
Magnetic reversal when
rock layers where
examined with a
magnetization that did
not agree with its
normal polarity.
Sea-Floor Spreading
Sonar - a device
that bounces sound
waves off under-
water objects and
then records the
echoes of these
sound waves. The
time it takes for
the echo to arrive
indicates the
distance to the
object.
 Why doesn’t the  The Pacific Ocean is getting
ocean floor keep smaller and the Atlantic Ocean
getting wider? is getting bigger.
 Bill Nye sea floor spreading vide
o
Defining sea floor spreading and
who discovered it.
Explain how sea floor spreading
works and where it is made from.
Cite why Paleomagnetism is a proof
supporting the sea floor spreading.
Give the correct answer:
1.Who discovered sea floor spreading?
a. Abraham Ortelius c. Tuzo Wilson
b. Alfred Wegener d. Harry Hess
2.Where do the oldest and youngest rocks located?
a. Oldest rocks are located far from the rift while
youngest rocks are located near the rift
b. Oldest rocks are located near the rift while
youngest rocks are located far from the rift
c. Oldest and Youngest rocks are both found near
the opening of the rift
d. Oldest and Youngest rocks are both found far
from the opening of the rift
Give the correct answer:

3.In sea floor spreading, where do the molten

materials rise and erupt?
a. In deep ocean trenches c. Along
mid-oceanic ridges
b. At the north and south poles d. Along
the edges of the continents
4.What causes sea floor to spread?
a. Earthquakes c. Sinking
Magma.
b. Rising molten magma d. Drifting
Continental crust
Assignment

 What are the structures of

ocean basins
 Describe the evolution of
ocean basins