Visualizing Plate Tectonics
Name:
Date:
Block:
To find the link, Google “Plate Tectonics Animation” then click the following link in the results
Learning Target: Identify 3 types of plate boundaries and features associated with each.
Introduction:
Read the introduction about plate tectonics on the “Home” page.
Click the “Maps” button and read the information in the “Plate Maps” widow.
To scroll up or down in a window click the up and down triangles.
Close the “Plate Maps” window after you read the information by clicking on the
Now click through each of the “Basemaps” by clicking the “Color Relief”, “Gray Relief” and “Continents” buttons to see
how the map changes. You can choose which ever background map you want. I would suggest the “Color Relief” or
“Continents” background map.
Open the “Map Legend” by clicking
Make note of the symbols for the boundaries and other features.
Analysis Questions
Click the white box below the word “Boundaries” to show the boundaries between the tectonic plates.
If you need the names of the plates, click the “Names” button.
1. What type of boundary goes right down middle of the Atlantic Ocean?
2. What type of boundary runs along the west coast of South American?
3. What type of boundary exists around the western side of the Pacific plate?
4. What type of boundary are the Himalayas associated with?
Click on the white box under “Volcanoes”. Click “Volcanoes” to learn more.
5. What type of boundary are the volcanoes mostly located?
6. What process is responsible for causing volcanoes in the “Ring of Fire”?
7. What is responsible for the volcanoes in Hawaii and Iceland?
Unclick “Volcanoes” and select “Earthquakes”. Click “Earthquakes” to learn more.
8. For each of the following, indicate what type of boundary is responsible for the earthquakes.
Location
Andes
San Andreas, CA
Mid-Atlantic ridge
Type of boundary
Select “Volcanoes” and “Hotspots”. Click “Hotspots” to learn more.
9. What is a hot spots?
10. Where in general do hotspots seem to occur relative to the plate boundaries?
Select “Velocity”. Click “Velocity” to learn more.
11. What do the numbers on the map indicate?
12. What are the units that speed is measured?
13. How fast is the northern part of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge spreading?
14. How fast is the southern part of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge spreading?
15. Which two plates are moving the fastest, relative to each other?
16. What type of boundary is represented in #15?
17. Name what sea floor feature would be found in that area?
18. Between what two plates is the fastest rate of subduction occurring?
19. What is the rate of movement for #18?
Select “Motion” from the top of the screen.
Use the arrow-slider at the bottom of the screen to
move the animation.
Slide it back and forth and observe the movement of the continents.
20. What do you notice about the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans as you slide the arrow back and forth?
21. Which continents broke apart first?
22. Where was India 150 mya?
23. Where is India now?
24. When did South America apart from Antarctica to leave that frozen continent all alone?
25. How long ago did India begin it’s collision with Asia?
26. How long ago did South America and Africa become completely separated?
Select “Details” from the top of the screen.
Click through each section using the arrows.
Watch the animation and read the information on the right side. Answer the questions.
Ocean-Continent Subduction
27. What type of boundary is represented?
28. Which plate subducted?
29. What sea floor feature is created due to the subduction?
30. At what depth does the magma begin to accumulate?
31. What feature is created on the continental plate as a result of subduction?
32. What are examples of these type of features?
Continental-Continental Collision
33. What type of boundary is represented in the animation?
34. What feature is created as a result of continental-continental convergence?
Ocean-Ocean Subduction
35. How is this type of subduction similar to continental-continental convergence?
36. How is this type of subduction different than continental-continental convergence?
37. What feature is created as a result of this type of subduction?
38. What are examples of these features?
39. How do earthquakes in subduction zones differ from other typical earthquakes?
Continental Rift
40. What causes the rift to begin to form in the continental crust?
41. What will eventually form in the rift valleys?
Give examples:
42. What will the Red Sea eventually become as the rift continues to widen?
Mid-Ocean Ridge
43. What type of boundary is associated with mid-ocean ridges?
44. Where is younger crust located?
Older crust?
Continental Transform
45. Describe the movement of the plates relative to each other.
46. What is an example of a continental transform boundary?
47. Why are earthquakes along continental transform boundaries so destructive?
Oceanic Transform
48. Where are these types of boundaries commonly located?
49. What type of faults occur along these boundaries?
50. Inactive areas of the faults beyond the ridge are are called
Oceanic Hotspots
51. How do hotspot volcanos differ from plate boundary volcanos?
52. What is an example of hotspot islands?
Continental Hotspots
53. What is an example of a continental hot spot?
or
Summary Analysis Questions
Refer to the activity and Chapter 2: Plate Tectonics and the Ocean Floor for help.
Matching: Identify which type of plate boundary is associated with each feature below.
____1. rift valley
____2. trench
____3. transform boundary
____4. mid-ocean ridge
____5. subduction
____6. San Andreas
____7. sea floor spreading
____8. “destructive”
____9. convergent boundary
____10. volcanic arc
____11. divergent boundary
____13. “constructive”
____14. transform fault
A
B
A
C
A
Match each geographic feature with the descriptions on the right.
____15.
____16.
____17.
____18.
____19.
____20.
____21.
____22.
____23.
____24.
Aleutian Islands
Mid-Atlantic Ridge
Cascade Mountains
Hawaiian Islands
East Pacific Rise
Himalayan Mountains
Yellowstone National Park
Andes Mountains
Challenger Deep
Iceland
A.
Oceanic - Continental convergence
B.
Oceanic – Oceanic convergence
C.
Hot spot/ Mantle Plume
D.
Continental – Continental convergence
E.
Subduction zone
F.
Divergent boundary