![]() This heat fuels convection in the ductile mantle which brings magma toward the surface at divergent plate boundaries and forces plates to subduct at. Movement of the plates is driven by heat generated from the radioactive decay of minerals in the earth. The ridge feature is created by the accumulation of hot lithosphere material, which is lighter than the dense underlying asthenosphere. Convergent plate boundaries are home to the deepest and largest earthquakes on the planet. Notice the differences in the Atlantic Ocean along the coasts of the continents. Sometimes one plate will move under the other. A mid-ocean ridge would then mark the boundary between the plates.\): Age of oceanic lithosphere, in millions of years. Convergent Boundaries - A convergent boundary is where two tectonic plates push together. If the plates there continue to diverge, millions of years from now eastern Africa will split from the continent to form a new landmass. The movement of these plates have changed the position and size of the. On land, giant troughs such as the Great Rift Valley in Africa form where plates are tugged apart. It is formed when plates move horizontally from each other. A single mid-ocean ridge system connects the world's oceans, making the ridge the longest mountain range in the world. The process renews the ocean floor and widens the giant basins. Mountains and volcanoes rise along the seam. Divergent BoundariesĪt divergent boundaries in the oceans, magma from deep in the Earth's mantle rises toward the surface and pushes apart two or more plates. In some cases, however, a convergent plate boundary can result in one tectonic plate diving underneath another. ![]() These types of collisions can also lead to underwater volcanoes that eventually build up into island arcs like Japan. The three types of plate boundaries are: Convergent - tectonic plates move towards each other Divergent - tectonic plates move apart Transform - tectonic plates slide past each other What. Typically, a convergent plate boundary such as the one between the Indian Plate and the Eurasian Plate forms towering mountain ranges, like the Himalaya, as Earth’s crust is crumpled and pushed upward. In addition, the diving plate melts and is often spewed out in volcanic eruptions such as those that formed some of the mountains in the Andes of South America.Īt ocean-ocean convergences, one plate usually dives beneath the other, forming deep trenches like the Mariana Trench in the North Pacific Ocean, the deepest point on Earth. As the overlying plate lifts up, it also forms mountain ranges. These convergent boundaries also occur where a plate of ocean dives, in a process called subduction, under a landmass. Mount Everest, the highest point on Earth, may be a tiny bit taller tomorrow than it is today. As the mash-up continues, the mountains get higher. Normally the older plate will subduct because of its higher density. India and Asia crashed about 55 million years ago, slowly giving rise to the Himalaya, the highest mountain system on Earth. When a convergent boundary occurs between two oceanic plates, one of those plates will subduct beneath the other. Wikipedia These structural regimes broadly relate to convergent boundaries, divergent boundaries, and transform boundaries, respectively, between tectonic plates. Where plates serving landmasses collide, the crust crumples and buckles into mountain ranges. They move at a rate of one to two inches (three to five centimeters) per year. The movement of the plates creates three types of tectonic boundaries: convergent, where plates move into one another divergent, where plates move apart and transform, where plates move sideways in relation to each other. Most geologic activity stems from the interplay where the plates meet or divide. (This includes the crust and uppermost part of the mantle.) Churning currents in the molten rocks below propel them along like a jumble of conveyor belts in disrepair. The plates make up Earth's outer shell, called the lithosphere. The tiny Juan de Fuca plate is largely responsible for the volcanoes that dot the Pacific Northwest of the United States. ![]() Though smaller in size, the minors are no less important when it comes to shaping the Earth. A convergent plate boundary is the boundary that occurs when two plates collide each other either a continental plate with continental plate or oceanic plate. Convergent plate boundaries - The convergent plate boundaries are boundaries along which two tectonic plates approach each other and the leading edge of one. ![]() Six of the majors are named for the continents embedded within them, such as the North American, African, and Antarctic plates. There are a few handfuls of major plates and dozens of smaller, or minor, plates.
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