Plate Tectonics

Plate Tectonics
modern (1960s) paradigm that incorporates continental drift into a model for large-scale Earth processes

Plate Tectonics
much of plate tectonic thought originated with studies of Earths ocean basins approximately 2/3 [70%] of Earth covered with water bathymetry of sea floor virtually unknown until World War II

Characteristics of Sea Floor

Echo Sounder sound waves produced on a ship time for travel to ocean floor and back to ship used to calculate depth Seismic Profiling high energy source produces reflection from ocean floor and from within rocks below

Characteristics of Sea Floor

continental margins (underlain by continental crust)

continental shelf continental slope continental rise

Characteristics of Sea Floor

continental shelf shallow water area from shoreline to slope with less than 1 slope

Characteristics of Sea Floor

continental slopenarrow zone where water depth increases from ca. 135 m to > 1,000 m with average 4 slope

Characteristics of Sea Floor

continental rise gently sloping area seaward of slope

Characteristics of Deep Ocean

30% of Earth abyssal plains flat areas covering much of sea floor average 3.8 km deep, covered with finegrained sediment, dark with little or no life

Characteristics of Deep Ocean

mid-ocean ridges long wide (>1,000 km) ridges that rise more than 2 km above abyssal plains divergent plate boundaries

the earths oceans host most of the boundaries of lithospheric plates ...

Plate Boundaries

divergent

production of oceanic crust or rifting of continents Mid Atlantic rift - East Africa rift

Plate Boundaries

convergent

subduction of oceanic crust or collision of continents Andes/Central America/Cascades/Aleutians/Japan through Himalayas/Iran through Alps

Plate Boundaries

transform

horizontal motion - no subduction San Andreas/Queen Charlotte/Denali/mid-oceanic ridges

Atlantic-Indian Plate Boundaries

Pacic Plate Boundaries

Distribution of Seismic Zones

Divergent Margins

Mid-Oceanic Ridges and Rises

Mid-Oceanic Ridges and Rises

Oceanic Crust Structure

Ophiolite Sequences

Mid-Oceanic Ridges and Rises

Mid-Oceanic Ridges and Rises

Mid-Oceanic Ridges and Rises

Oceanic Crust Ages

Mid-Oceanic Ridges and Rises

Ridge and Rise Spreading Rates

Black Smokers

Black Smokers

Black Smokers

Continental Rifting

Continental Rifting

East African Rift

East African Rift

East African Rift

convergence an equal and opposite reaction

Convergent Margins

Convergent Margins

oceanic trenches long narrow (ca. 100 km) deep (> 8,000 m) trenches that border continents or island arcs

Convergent Margins

Convergent Margins

Convergent Margins
Ocean-Ocean Convergence Ocean-Continent Convergence Continent-Continent Convergence

Ocean-Ocean Convergence

Ocean-Ocean Convergence

Ocean-Ocean Convergence

Ocean-Continent Convergence

Continent- Continent Convergence

when continents collide, huge compressional forces cause crustal thickening, thrusting and uplift of coastal sediments and continental rocks

Continent- Continent Convergence

Continent- Continent Convergence continents become sutured together

Continent- Continent Convergence

modern example of continent-continent convergence provided by Himalayas

Continent- Continent Convergence

Continent- Continent Convergence

Continent- Continent Convergence

ancient example provided by AppalachianCaledonide Mountain Belt of eastern North America and northern Europe

Appalachian Mountains

Appalachian Mountains

Appalachian Mountains

North American Cordillera

Mesozoic-Cenozoic development of North American Cordillera -

complex area of accreted island arcs, N. America continental arcs, flood basalts, and block-fault mountains developed over long time

North American Cordillera

most recent episode of large-scale deformation Laramide Orogeny (90-40 million years ago) along oceanic-continental convergent boundary

North American Cordillera

Cenozoic development westward drift of North America, resulting volcanism and interaction with microplates and oceanic ridges associated with subduction under western coast of North America

transform boundaries conservative plate interaction

Transform Boundaries

Transform Boundaries

 but is there any real evidence that lithospheric plates move?

Hot Spots

Hot Spots

Hot Spots

 so what is thought to cause plate motion?

Mantle Convection

mantle convection: mass movement of the mantle that may drive plate motion

Mantle Convection

Mantle Convection

 an alternative explanation

Another Driving Mechanism?

Sinking or Foundering of Oceanic Crust: crust cools and becomes denser with age, eventually dense enough to sink

The Dynamic Earth