gravity
cause its cooler
The plate with cooler, denser crust sinks under the other plate, forming a trench. There, the oceanic crust sinks down back into the mantle.
The plate with cooler, denser crust sinks under the other plate, forming a trench. There, the oceanic crust sinks down back into the mantle.
The force pushing upward on the continental crust is isostatic rebound, caused by the buoyancy of the less dense continental crust floating on the denser mantle. The downward force is from the weight of the overlying rock and sediments, as well as tectonic forces like subduction or compression.
Oceanic crust is denser than continental crust because it is composed of denser rocks like basalt and gabbro, while continental crust is made up of lighter rocks like granite and sedimentary rocks. This density difference is due to the composition and thickness of each type of crust.
Oceanic crust is denser and thinner than continental crust, making it more likely to be subducted beneath the less dense continental crust. This process occurs because the denser oceanic crust is pulled downward into the mantle at convergent plate boundaries due to gravitational forces. The subduction of oceanic crust beneath continental crust helps to recycle Earth's materials and plays a key role in plate tectonics and the geologic cycle.
denser (Apex)
The force driving the process of pulling dense pieces of oceanic crust downward towards the mantle is gravity. As oceanic crust cools and becomes denser, it sinks into the mantle due to gravitational forces. This process is known as subduction.
Continental crust is less dense and cooler than oceanic crust and less dense and cooler than the asthenosphere, therefore instead of subducting, it is pushed upward in a collision between continents, or floats over a subducting oceanic crust.
Ocean crust is denser
It is denser than continental crust.
Oceanic crust is denser than continental crust due to its higher levels of iron and magnesium, causing it to sink below the continental crust in subduction zones. The cooler, denser oceanic plate is pulled down by gravity into the mantle, initiating the process of subduction. This movement also generates volcanic activity and seismic events along the subduction zone.