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Plate: A rigid slab of lithosphere rock that has defined boundaries and floats on the denser rocks of the Anthenosphere Anthenosphere: the plastic layer of the upper mantle directly below the lithosphere that can flow slowly when put under constant pressure Convection Currents: a current that forms in liquids or gases when warmer, less dense materials sink, setting up a cycle of movement Plate tectonics: The study of the movement of the earth’s plates and the effects they have on the surface features of the lithosphere Tectonics: the processes that deform the earth’s lithosphere and the rock structures and surface features created by these processes Folding: the processes that bend and twist rocks through compression or squeezing Faulting: the process by which rocks move past one another along a fracture or crack in the earth’s crust, usually occurring where plates are separating, sliding past one another or colliding Vulcanism: The movement of molten rock, or magma, beneath or above the earth’s surface Hot spot: a point on the earth’s surface where strong upward convection currents or plumes of hot magma in the upper mantle push up below the plates of the lithosphere causing volcanic activity Converging plate boundary: The boundary between two plates that are moving towards one another Diverging plate boundary: The boundary between two plates that are moving apart Transform plate boundary: The boundary between two plates that are slipping or sliding past one another Collision zone: The zone where two plates containing continents are crashing into one another at a converging plate boundary Subduction zone: the zone where an oceanic plate is sinking below a plate containing continents at a converging plate boundary Mid-ocean ridge: the ridge that marks the boundary between two or more separating plates Sea-Floor spreading: the process that creates new sea floor as plates spread apart or separate at mid-ocean ridges Magnetic reversal: a periodic change in the polarity of the earth’s magnetic field from normal (north) to reversed (south), or vice versa Viscosity: The resistance to flow of a liquid, such as magma, beneath or above the earth’s surface Pillow Lava: a pillow-shaped igneous rock formed by the rapid surface cooling of magma in direct contact with cold ocean water, often at mid-ocean ridges Shield volcano: A gently rising, smooth-sloped volcanic dome formed from very fluid (low viscosity) basaltic lava typical of mid-ocean ridges and hot spots Rift Valley: A steep-sided valley formed when a block of the earth’s crusts falls down between two parallel fault lines; also known as graben Transform Fault: a fault formed by the horizontal movement of the earth’s crust, occurring where two plates are sliding past one another Normal Fault: a fault resulting from the upward movement on one side of fault line and/or the downward movement on the other, forming a cliff or fault scarp Reverse Fault: a fault where one block on the earth’s crust moves up against another Fault scarp: the often straight, continuous cliff created by the upright of the earth’s surface Strike-slip Fault: a fault where two sections of the earth’s crust move almost horizontally past each other Graben: another word for rift valley, formed where a block of the earth’s crust drops down between two parallel fault lines, often where the crust is moving apart or creating tension.
Approximate Word count = 548
Approximate Pages = 2.2
(250 words per page double spaced)
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