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Continental plates have a larger mass weight. It's like 2 sumo wrestlers pushing against each other. The bigger one usually wins.

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Q: Why do oceanic plates move down and not the continental plate?
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When does subduction occur?

Subduction is a process that occurs when two oceanic plates pull apart


When two plates come together?

They fold up when there continental, creating mountains and steep hills. The Rocky's are a great example. Oceanic plate collisions cause tsunamis, and Oceanic plates are subducted under Continental plates, they are overlapped by the continental plate.


Why oceanic crust younger than the continental crust?

Oceanic crust is constantly created and recycled due to place tectonics. Oceanic crust is created by spreading ridges in the ocean floor and the oceanic plates subside under continental plates thus forcing it back down into the magma as the plate grows. Searching Oceanic Plate Tectonics on google will provide images that made this easier to understand.


What 2 tectonic plates move to each other with one going down and the other going over top?

It is the oceanic plate that is subducted into the melting zone as it is the denser out of that and the continental plate. In fact, the continental plates have been known to chant such provocations as "going down going down going down" and "who's your daddy!" in the subduction zone.


Can continental lithosphere subduct?

Not usually, as the rock they are made of (mostly granite) is too light to sink into the mantle (mostly denser basalt). Small fragments of continental crust can get entrained in a subducting oceanic plate and be dragged down into the mantle as that plate subducts. Where continental crust collides with oceanic crust, it always floats forcing the oceanic crust down and causing it to subduct. Where continental crust collides with continental crust, both plates crumple and compress dramatically, being forced upward into unusually high mountains (e.g. the Himalayas) and downward into deep continental roots that support the weight of those mountains. Nothing subducts in this case. But whole continental plates subducting does not happen, while much more oceanic plate area has been subducted in the history of the earth than the total surface area of the earth.

Related questions

What are two differences between the oceanic crust and the continental crust?

The oceanic crust consists of heavier rock, mostly Basalt, so that if a oceanic plate collides with a continental plate the oceanic plate will be forced down below the continental plate, forming island arcs.continental plates are thicker than oceanic plates.


What are the two differences between the continental crust and the oceanic crust?

The oceanic crust consists of heavier rock, mostly Basalt, so that if a oceanic plate collides with a continental plate the oceanic plate will be forced down below the continental plate, forming island arcs.continental plates are thicker than oceanic plates.


What are tectonicsplates?

Tectonic plates.Tectonic plates are plates underneath Earth's surface that move very slowly. There are oceanic and continental plates. Of course, oceanic plates are plates under the ocean, and continental plates are plates underneath ground, or continents. Each of the plates carry the things above them, land or ocean. When two continental or oceanic plates collide, it causes a fold in Earth's surface, and an earthquake. Now, when a continental plate draws near and nearly collides with an oceanic plate, something called subduction occurs. Subduction is basically when the oceanic plate dips down below the continental plate, causing a trench.


When does subduction occur?

Subduction is a process that occurs when two oceanic plates pull apart


When two plates come together?

They fold up when there continental, creating mountains and steep hills. The Rocky's are a great example. Oceanic plate collisions cause tsunamis, and Oceanic plates are subducted under Continental plates, they are overlapped by the continental plate.


What happens between oceanic and continental plates at convergent boundaries?

Convergent boundary+oceanic plate=subduction because the oceanic plate is more dense causing it to subduct down back to the mantle.


What explains the observation that when a continental and oceanic plate collide the oceanic plate dives down under the continental plate?

The oceanic plate must be more dense than the continental plate for this to happen.


What happens when plates collide and one plate sinks?

The collision of plates commonly includes "subduction", where one plate is forced under the other, down into the mantle. These plates are melted and rise again, adding to the magma under the overlying plate. This creates heated rock that can later emerge through the surface in volcanoes. Oceanic plates are thinner and denser than continental plates, so are the ones forced down, either under a continental plate or another oceanic plate.


How do plate tectonics make volcanos?

Plate tectonics is about thin oceanic plates knocking against larger continental plates. When both plates are pushed against each other by thermal actions of the underlying magma then the oceanic plates goes under the continental plate. As it is pushed down it melts and forms magma that rises to the surface and the magma pushes its way through the continental plate and creates volcanoes. The more the oceanic plate is pushed under the continental plate, the greater the potential for more volcanoes and more volcanic activity. Volcanoes can occur under the sea when two oceanic plates come together as well. This action can cause volcanic islands to form.


How do tectonic plate volcanoes erupt?

Plate tectonics is about thin oceanic plates knocking against larger continental plates. When both plates are pushed against each other by thermal actions of the underlying magma then the oceanic plates goes under the continental plate. As it is pushed down it melts and forms magma that rises to the surface and the magma pushes its way through the continental plate and creates volcanoes. The more the oceanic plate is pushed under the continental plate, the greater the potential for more volcanoes and more volcanic activity. Volcanoes can occur under the sea when two oceanic plates come together as well. This action can cause volcanic islands to form.


What happens when an oceanic plate collides with a continental plate?

when oceanic crust and continental crust collide, the oceanic crust sinks down beneath the continental crust. this is called subduction.


Want to continental plate in an oceanic plate Clyde the oceanic plate will be pushed down into the mental melted in a process called what?

Subduction