Tectonic plates are segments of the Earth's lithosphere, the hard rocky outer shell composed of the crust and the uppermost mantle. This shell is divided by lines of faults, ridges of plate creation, and zones of plate destruction. All in all, there are roughly 30 tectonic plates which cover the entire surface of the planet. Plates can be composed of oceanic crust, continental crust, or a combination of both.
Plate movements occur because the layer of Earth directly below the lithosphere, the asthenosphere, is hot enough, and under enough lithostatic pressure to prevent its melting, that it can deform without fracture. And although convection of heat does play a role in the movement of lithospheric plates, the convection currents themselves may be caused by gravity, which induces the sinking of older dense slabs of oceanic crust at subduction zones (a process known as 'slab pull').
The energy driving all of these processes is heat from the interior of the Earth derived from radioactive decay and residual heat from Earth's formation, and gravity which results in slab pull and push.
== == The main features of plate tectonics are: * The Earth's surface is covered by a series of crustal plates. * The plates are composed of crustal rock and solid upper mantle which is called the lithosphere. * Plates are composed of continental and oceanic crust. * The oceanic crusts are continually moving, spreading from the center, sinking at the edges, in a process of recycling. * Rising legs of convection currents beneath the plates create additional plate material at mid-ocean ridges, sinking legs of convection currents swallow old crustal plates at subduction zones. * The heat driving the convection currents is from radioactive decay of material within the Earth and from residual heat from accretion processes during Earth's formation. Convection cells in the magma of the outer core pull the earth's tectonic plates along the surface. These plates can collide and cause earthquakes.
Plate tectonics are what each continent is on. They move and are continuing to move today. It has to do with the earth's shape because the plate tectonics move the continents around.
plate tectonics
A theory that says the lithosphere is divided into plates that move around on top of the asthenosphere is called '' plate tectonics''
The relationship of continental drift and plate tectonics is that the plate tectonics move and are under the ground and the continental drift is on the top of earth...
it is because when like the tectonics move slowly the tectonic is like
Plate tectonics are what each continent is on. They move and are continuing to move today. It has to do with the earth's shape because the plate tectonics move the continents around.
plate tectonics
the crust cracks and magma fills in the space
well i think that it is that plate tectonics are when they move by earthquakes and crustal features are when they discribe the crustal and the plate tectonics.
they move because of the magma
It depends on which plate tectonics you are talking about. Each plate has its specific direction of movement. All plate tectonics move in different directions.
plate tectonics
Plate Tectonics
A theory that says the lithosphere is divided into plates that move around on top of the asthenosphere is called '' plate tectonics''
The relationship of continental drift and plate tectonics is that the plate tectonics move and are under the ground and the continental drift is on the top of earth...
Plate tectonics move. But the plate margin that cause strong earthquakes are collision and conservative plate margins. I hope it helped!
from plate tectonics