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The Structure of the Earth and Plate Tectonics

The Structure of the Earth and Plate Tectonics. Structure of the Earth. The Earth is made up of 3 main layers: Core Mantle Crust. Mantle. Outer core. Inner core. Crust. The Crust. This is what we live on! The crust has 2 types:. Continental Crust

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The Structure of the Earth and Plate Tectonics

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  1. The Structure of the Earth and Plate Tectonics

  2. Structure of the Earth • The Earth is made up of 3 main layers: • Core • Mantle • Crust Mantle Outer core Inner core Crust

  3. The Crust • This is what we live on! • The crust has 2 types: • Continental Crust • thick (10-70km)- buoyant (less dense than oceanic crust) - mostly old Oceanic Crust - thin (~7 km)- dense (sinks under continental crust)- young

  4. How do we know what the Earth is made of? • Geophysical surveys: seismic, gravity, magnetics, electrical, geodesy • Acquisition: land, air, sea and satellite • Geological surveys: fieldwork, boreholes, mines

  5. What is Plate Tectonics?

  6. If you look at a map of the world, you may notice that some of the continents could fit together like pieces of a puzzle.

  7. Plate Tectonics • The Earth’s crust is divided into 12 major plates which are moved in various directions. • This plate motion causes them to collide, pull apart, or scrape against each other. • Each type of interaction causes a characteristic set of Earth structures or “tectonic” features. • The word, tectonic, refers to the deformation of the crust as a consequence of plate interaction.

  8. World Plates

  9. What are tectonic plates made of? • Plates are made of rigid lithosphere. The lithosphere is made up of the crust and the upper part of the mantle.

  10. What lies beneath the tectonic plates? • Below the lithosphere (which makes up the tectonic plates) is the asthenosphere.

  11. Plate Movement • “Plates” of lithosphere are moved around by the underlying hot mantle convection cells

  12. Practical Exercise 1 Supercontinents!

  13. What happens at tectonic plate boundaries?

  14. Divergent Convergent Transform Three types of plate boundary

  15. Spreading ridges As plates move apart new material is erupted to fill the gap Divergent Boundaries

  16. Age of Oceanic Crust Courtesy of www.ngdc.noaa.gov

  17. Iceland: An example of continental rifting • Iceland has a constructive plate boundary running through its middle

  18. Collision Boundaries

  19. Continent-Continent Collision • Forms mountains,e.g. European Alps, Himalayas

  20. Himalayas

  21. Destructive Boundaries • It’s called SUBDUCTION

  22. Subduction • Oceanic lithosphere subducts underneath the continental lithosphere • Oceanic lithosphere heats and dehydrates as it subsides • The melt rises forming volcanism • E.g. The Andes

  23. Conservative Boundaries • Where plates slide past each other Above: View of the San Andreas transform fault

  24. Practical Exercise 2 • Where will the UK be in: • 1,000 years? • 1,000,000 years? • 1,000,000,000 years?

  25. Volcanoes and Plate Tectonics… …what’s the connection?

  26. Pacific Ring of Fire Volcanism is mostly focused at plate margins

  27. - Subduction - pulling apart - Hotspots Volcanoes are formed by:

  28. Pacific Ring of Fire Hotspot volcanoes

  29. What are Hotspot Volcanoes? • Hot mantle plumes breaching the surface in the middle of a tectonic plate The Hawaiian island chain are examples of hotspot volcanoes. Photo: Tom Pfeiffer / www.volcanodiscovery.com

  30. The tectonic plate moves over a fixed hotspot forming a chain of volcanoes. The volcanoes get younger from one end to the other.

  31. Earthquakes and Plate Tectonics… …what’s the connection?

  32. As with volcanoes, earthquakes are not randomly distributed over the globe • At the boundaries between plates, friction causes them to stick together. When built up energy causes them to break, earthquakes occur. Figure showing the distribution of earthquakes around the globe

  33. Where do earthquakes form? Figure showing the tectonic setting of earthquakes

  34. Plate Tectonics Summary • The Earth is made up of 3 main layers (core, mantle, crust) • On the surface of the Earth are tectonic plates that slowly move around the globe • Plates are made of crust and upper mantle (lithosphere) • There are 2 types of plate • There are 4 types of plate boundaries • Volcanoes and Earthquakes are closely linked to the margins of the tectonic plates

  35. Monday 10th October • Glossary to finish • Homework due in today (some did it during lesson) • Look at the assessment (going to do it P2 Tuesday) • Compare the way rich and poor countries react toEQs

  36. Extra Glossary words • Shield volcano – is a volcano made of BASIC lava (like the ones in Hawaii) the sides gently slope as the lava is runny like custard • Composite – a volcano made of alternate layers of lava and ash – looks like a triangle (classic volcano shape)

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