Tectonic Plates
(And the theory of continental drift)
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Tectonic plates are large pieces of rock that make up Earth's outer shell. They vary in size, some bigger than continents and some only as big as a small country. They keep moving due to convection in the magma below and the magnetic field above. When they move, they cause collisions and pulling, forming three main boundary types between tectonic plates:
Convergent plate boundaries occur when plates move toward each other, creating mountains. When one plate is denser than the other, a subduction zone forms. When this happens, the less dense plate can have volcanos.
Divergent plate boundaries happen when plates move away from each other.
When plates move past each other, we call it a transform plate boundary.
Convergent boundaries: Compression force, Push
Divergent: Tension force, pull
Transform: Shear force, slide
Continental Drift is the theory that continents are moving and that they were once (and many other times) together. Things that support this theory are that fossils of the same animal are found on distant continents, that similar landforms and rocks are serperated by oceans, and that the continents fit together.
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