0
Spreading of seafloor occurs at the mid-ocean rifts, where there is a continuous flow of material rising from the mantle. There is not a unanimously accepted theory as to the cause of the rifting that is taking place. Once the rifting and mantle material inflow has started, however, the conduit is in place. The thinness of the crust at the rift makes it easier for the material to rise, and as it rises it becomes molten and emplaces itself to form new oceanic crust when it solidifies. The rising material is part of a convection current in the Earth's mantle. At the opposite end of the current are subduction zones, where oceanic crust sinks back into the mantle and melts, causing surface features as composite volcanoes. With this cycle of creation and destruction, the total area of seafloor remains relatively stable, but continents change in relative position to each other. These changes do not occur rapidly. The average speed of crustal plate movement is less than the average rate of fingernail growth.
What else can I help you with?
What process in earth's interior causes subduction and sea floor spreading?
Subduction and sea floor spreading are both a result of the movement of the tectonic plates.Plate Tectonics
What is the relation between rising and sinking material in the earths interior and subduction and rifting?
Rising material in Earth's interior typically leads to rifting, where tectonic plates move apart. This process creates new crust. Sinking material, on the other hand, is associated with subduction, where one tectonic plate slides beneath another, leading to the destruction of crust.
What is subduction and what causes this geological process to occur?
Subduction is the process where one tectonic plate moves beneath another plate at a convergent boundary. This occurs because the denser oceanic plate sinks into the mantle due to gravity, causing the less dense continental plate to override it.
Describe the mechanism of plate motion?
Plate motion is primarily driven by the process of mantle convection beneath the Earth's lithosphere. Heat from the Earth's core causes material in the mantle to move in a circular pattern, exerting forces on the tectonic plates above. This causes the plates to move, resulting in processes such as subduction, seafloor spreading, and continental drift.
What is the primary force that cause the seafloor to spread and continental to drift?
The primary force that causes the seafloor to spread and continents to drift is plate tectonics. This process is driven by the movement of molten rock in the Earth's mantle, which generates forces that push apart tectonic plates, leading to seafloor spreading and continental drift.
What process in earth's interior causes subduction and sea floor spreading?
Subduction and sea floor spreading are both a result of the movement of the tectonic plates.Plate Tectonics
Do plate tectonics work by subduction?
no magma riseing thur gaps in plate causes them to move called seafloor spread
What is the relation between rising and sinking material in the earths interior and subduction and rifting?
Rising material in Earth's interior typically leads to rifting, where tectonic plates move apart. This process creates new crust. Sinking material, on the other hand, is associated with subduction, where one tectonic plate slides beneath another, leading to the destruction of crust.
What in earths interior causes subduction and sea floor spreading?
Subduction and sea floor spreading are both a result of the movement of the tectonic plates.Plate Tectonics
What process in Earth's interior causes subduction and sea-floormspreading?
Convective flows of molten rock beneath the Earth's crust causes tectonic plates to spread apart in one area and to sink or be subducted beneath another plate at the opposite edge of the plate.
Which process causes the earth's crust to be continuously formes by volcanic activity?
Seafloor spreading
The seafloor divided where two platesmoved away from each other?
Actually it formed where two plates hit each other and one was subducted.. This subduction, or moving under, causes trenches to form. This in fact is how the marianas trench was formed.
What is subduction and what causes this geological process to occur?
Subduction is the process where one tectonic plate moves beneath another plate at a convergent boundary. This occurs because the denser oceanic plate sinks into the mantle due to gravity, causing the less dense continental plate to override it.
What causes the seafloor to spread?
rising molten magma
How does convection under Earth's surface happen?
Convection under the Earth's surface occurs due to the heat generated by the radioactive decay of elements in the Earth's interior. This heat causes hotter materials to rise and cooler materials to sink, creating a circular motion of material within the Earth's mantle. This convection helps drive the movement of tectonic plates and contributes to processes like seafloor spreading and subduction.
Describe the mechanism of plate motion?
Plate motion is primarily driven by the process of mantle convection beneath the Earth's lithosphere. Heat from the Earth's core causes material in the mantle to move in a circular pattern, exerting forces on the tectonic plates above. This causes the plates to move, resulting in processes such as subduction, seafloor spreading, and continental drift.
Subduction occurs where the oceanic crust bends down toward the mantle at a(n)?
Seafloor spreading occurs along mid-ocean ridges. Mid-ocean ridges are large mountain ranges on the ocean floor. The shifting in the rock causes the seafloor to spread and allows magma to bubble and form more mountains on the ocean floor.
