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Oceanography
Plate Tectonics
106
Geology
Undergraduate 2
01/23/2009

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Term
What is plate tectonics?
Definition
A theory to explain global distribution of volcanoes, earthquakes, faluts, mountain belts, features of seafloor, evolution of continents and oceans. sea floor spreading
Term
Who was Matthew Maury?
Definition
A U.S. Navy Ltnt., created a bathymetric map with a large conttinuous mountain chain in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
Term
How was Matthew Maury's findings confirmed?
Definition
by Trans-Atlantic telegraph able and WWI echo soundings.
Term
Who was Eduard Suess?
Definition
(1831-1914) expert on the geography of Alps, theorized alps to the north were once at the bottom of an ocean, fern was found in fossils in s. america, africa and india.
Term
What did Eduard Suess propose?
Definition
Super continent "Gondwanaland" .. a land bridge connecting all the continents.
Term
Who was Alfred WEgener?
Definition
(1880-1930)- cataloged fossils as a graduate student, similarites intrigued him, developed ideas while recovering from wound received in WWI.
Term
Who proposed continental drift hypothesis?
Definition
Alfred Wegener.
Term
In what year did Wegener propose continental drift hypothesis?
Definition
1915.
Term
What was the supercontinent hypothesis?
Definition
Supercontinent called pangea began breaking apart about 200 MYA.
Term
What was WEgener's Evidence?
Definition
Fit of the continents, rock type of structural similarities and fossil evidence on different continents, paleoclimatic evidence (bones of same animals found on different continents of where they would connect.
Term
Was WEgener's hypothesis embraced?
Definition
No. It was ignored.
Term
What was discovered on U.S.S. Atlantis?
Definition
1947 - Sediments of the AO are much thinner than originally thought. 1950s - use of magnetometers revealed odd magnetic variations on the ocean floor - led to magnetic polarity in rocks.
Term
What is a magnetometer?
Definition
Detects iron or magnetic objects, allows ships to find submarines before submarine finds them, strange readings reported (difference in height) of the floor of ocean.
Term
What is the earth's magnetic field?
Definition
resembles that produced by a large bar magnet, magnetic field lines wrap around earth, magnetic north is not equal to true north (true north as on a compass).
Term
Is magnetic north, true north?
Definition
No.
Term
What is paleomagnetism
Definition
Sudy of magnetic field properties of rocks.
Term
Describe paleomagnetism in earth/rocks
Definition
Magnetic field of eart his imprinted upon iron-bearing rocks when they form.
Term
What does paleomagnetism help in studying
Definition
Provides a record of magnetic reversals and original latitude.
Term
What is polar wander
Definition
Drift of the magnetic field by the drift of the continent.
Term
Who was Harry Hess?
Definition
Princeton professof geology and navy reservist
Term
What was Hess' contribution?
Definition
He was called to serve in WW II, got command of his own ship, got echo sounder, magnetometer, kept instruments running 24/7.
Term
What did Hess and his crew do?
Definition
Conducted echo sounding surveys in teh Pacific, measured the oceans to the deepest points (7 miles), discovered 100s of flat-topped mountains on the Pacific floor - GUYOTS)
Term
What are Guyots?
Definition
They are flat-topped mountains on the Pacific floor.
Term
What evidence do we have for sea floor spreading?
Definition
Earthquakes at ridges and subduction zones.
Term
Where is heat flow highest in ocean floor?
Definition
AT ridges, decreases away from ridges.
Term
How old is the oldest crust rock on sea floor
Definition
200 MY
Term
Are sediments older or newer away from the ridges?
Definition
Older.
Term
Earths magnetic field reverses
Definition
Yes.. this change is recorded by iron minerls in rocks.
Term
Where is new crust formed and old crust consumed
Definition
Formed at ridges, consumed at trenches.
Term
Describe Hess' sea flor spreading hypothesis
Definition
New crus forms at ridges, old crust consumed at trenches, theory of sea floor spreading driven by convection cells. Oldest crust at the trench, newest crust at the ridge. This being done by the activity of the convection cell (magma in the mantle).
Term
Based on radiometric dating, how old is the oldest crustal rock
Definition
200 MYO
Term
Are sediments older close to the ridge or away from the ridge?
Definition
Away.
Term
What three things make up the theory of plate tectonics?
Definition
Continental Drift + Sea floor spreading + Paleomagnetism = plate tectonics.
Term
Is the earth's lithosphere, one solid plate?
Definition
No. It is broken up into plates.
Term
What causes the plates to move?
Definition
Hot, weak asthenosphere allows them to move.
Term
What is lithosphere?
Definition
The outer layer of earth's structure including the crust and the upper mantle to a depth of about 200 km.
Term
What are the major components involved in plate tectonic movements?
Definition
Lithosphere plates.
Term
What is asthenosphere?
Definition
A plastic layer in the upper mantle 80-200 KM deep that may allow lateral movement of lithospheric plates and isostatic adjustments.
Term
What is the rate of movement of plates?
Definition
5 cm per year.
Term
What are the three layers of earth composition?
Definition
Crust, Mantle, Core
Term
What are the earths physical property layers
Definition
Lithosphere, Asthenosphere, Mesosphere, Outer Core, Inner Core
Term
What is the average rock density of continental crust?
Definition
2.7 g/cm3
Term
what is the composition of the crust?
Definition
granodionite
Term
What is the density of the oceanic crust?
Definition
3.0 g/cm3
Term
What is the composition of the oceanic crust?
Definition
igneous rock basalt.
Term
Is the color of the rock produced by the earth's magnetic field dark or light color?
Definition
dark.
Term
Describe the Mantle
Definition
82% of earth's volume, solid rocky layer, upper portion has peridotite, TWO PARTS, mesosphere (lower mantle) and asthenosphere, upper mantle.
Term
What are the two parts of the mantle?
Definition
Mesosphere (lower mantle), asthenosphere (upper mantle).
Term
Describe the Core
Definition
Larger than the planet Mars, mostly iron and nickel, two parts, outer core, liquid, inner cole, solid.
Term
What is the average density of the core?
Definition
11 g/cm3
Term
What are the two parts of the core?
Definition
Outer core, liquid, inner core, solid
Term
What is responsible for the earth's magnetic field?
Definition
the core, made of material that conducts electricity. Core is mobile.
Term
Is the core mobile or fixed?
Definition
Mobile.
Term
Core is very hot.
Definition
Yes. 3,950 Kelvin (6,650F/3,677C)
Term
In magnetic reversals, by what is the earths' magnetic field sustained
Definition
Geodynamo
Term
What is geodynamo?
Definition
Geodynamo generates new magnetic fields.
Term
What happens when the fields in the magnetic field do not line up?
Definition
Unstable area forms
Term
What happens if the unstable area grows large enough?
Definition
A flip will occur
Term
Where is there an area now getting big enough to cause a filp?
Definition
east-central atlantic ocean.
Term
How long do flips take to complete
Definition
Thousands of years.
Term
When was the last flip?
Definition
780,000 years ago
Term
What are P-waves?
Definition
Wave that travels through liquids and solids.
Term
P-waves travel faster than S-waves
Definition
True
Term
What is the direction of a P-wave
Definition
back and forth
Term
What is the direction of an S-wave
Definition
up and down.
Term
S-wave travels through liquids
Definition
False
Term
Describe seismic waves as they pass from one material to another
Definition
They refract.
Term
Describe Isostacy
Definition
The balancing of pressures exerted by mass of continents and ocean crust on mantle (think of my mattress).
Term
Because of Isostacy, continents float on mantle like iceergs in water
Definition
True
Term
Continental crust is heavy
Definition
Yes.
Term
What is the weast spot?
Definition
Spreading center.
Term
Where to major interactions among individual plates occur?
Definition
Along their boundaries
Term
Describe the three type of plate boundaries
Definition
Divergent, Convergent and Transform fault.
Term
What is the movement of divergant plate?
Definition
They spread apart. (Mid-Atlantic Ridge).
Term
What is the movement of convergent plate?
Definition
Come together. (Andes Mountains, Cascade Mts.)
Term
What is the transform fault movement?
Definition
Pass along each other. (San Andreas Fault, Alpine Fault).
Term
A mid-ocean ridge is called a continental rift on land
Definition
True
Term
Where are divergant plate boundaries mostly located?
Definition
along the axis and midoceanic ridges and a few on land (continental rifts)
Term
A trench offests a fracture zone
Definition
True.
Term
Dead sea fault is transofrm fault
Definition
True
Term
What is extensional tectonics?
Definition
Land is extending - rio grande valley rift is composed of basalt.
Term
Continental rifting:
Definition
Basin and Range, region is slowly pulling apart, no active spreading center.
Term
Trenches are surface expression of subduction zone
Definition
True
Term
What are convergant plate boundaries?
Definition
Where two plates collide.
Term
What three types of convergant plates are there?
Definition
Oceanic-continental. Oceanic-oceanic and Continental-continental.
Term
Give an example of Ocean-Continent convergence
Definition
Mt. St. Helen
Term
Describe ocean-continent convergence
Definition
Subduction zone, ocean crust is 3 gm dense, continental crust is 2.7 gm dens. Ocean crust gets subducted, melts, then melt rises up. Big explosive volcanos are ocean-continent convergence. (Andes Mts. and Cascade Mts.)
Term
Describe ocean-ocean convergence
Definition
Two oceanic plates. The older and colder plate gets subducted beneath the younger plate, results in island arc, result in subduction. (Mariana and Aleutian Islands)
Term
Japan has five arcs colliding
Definition
true
Term
Describe continent-continent convergence
Definition
Come together as huge collision. Himalays formed by india pushing into Asia. (HImalays and Alps).
Term
DEscribe transform fault boundaries
Definition
Plates slide past each other, no new lithosphere is created or destroyed, most join two segments of midocean ridge as part of prominent linear breaks in the oceanic crust known as frzcture zone.
Term
California is on what plate?
Definition
Pacific plate.
Term
California is at plate boundary.
Definition
True
Term
Describe the two types of transform faults
Definition
Oceanic - wholly in ocean floor. and Cotinental -extends from mid ocean ridge across the continent.
Term
What are hot spots
Definition
Areas of intense volcanic activity that remain in more or less the same location over long periods of time and are unrelated to plate boundaries.
Term
Hot spots are unrelated to plate boundaries
Definition
True.
Term
The majority of world's hot spots are not related to plate boundaries, those that are are along divergant plate boundaires where the lithosphere is thin
Definition
true.
Term
How are hot spots formed?
Definition
Caused by rising plumes of mantle material.
Term
Hot spots are mobile?
Definition
False. They are stationary
Term
The Hawaiian islands are a result of a hot spot?
Definition
True.
Term
What is a seamount?
Definition
An island that is below water surface.
Term
What is a tablemount?
Definition
An island that with erosion has had the top part flattened.
Term
Seamount and Tablemount are related to hot spot
Definition
True.
Term
Coral reefs associated wtih subsiding seafloor
Definition
True
Term
Describe the three types of coral reef?
Definition
Fringing, Barrier, Atoll
Term
What was the convergent boundary largest earthquake?
Definition
Chile 9.??
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