INT.SCI - PLATE TECTONICS

Cards (27)

  • Earth began as a single landmass or supercontinent called _______ .
    Pangaea
  • The term Pangaea comes from the Greek words pan which means "___" and gaea which means "_____."
    All and Earth
  • Pangaea literally translates to "___ __ _____" or "___ _____."
    All of Earth or All lands
  • Pangaea was surrounded by a vast sea or super ocean called ___________, which means "___ ____."
    Panthalassa, All Seas
  • One of the earliest theories on the changing geography and surface topography of Earth was the ___________ _____, which was proposed in the early twentieth century.
    Contraction Theory
  • This theory suggested that as Earth cooled after it's formation, its surface contracted and wrinkled, with these wrinkles being the mountain ranges on Earth's surface.
    Contraction Theory
  • This theory also assumed that all other features on Earth were formed during a single cooling event and that the planet was relatively static, without any significant change since the cooling (and wrinkling) slowed to a halt.
    Contraction Theory
  • The contraction Theory was superseded by the ______ __ ___________ _____ proposed by Alfred Wegener in 1912.
    Theory of Continental Drift
  • The contraction Theory was supersed by the theory of continental drift by ______ _______ in 1912.
    Alfred Wegener
  • The contraction Theory was supersed by the theory of continental drift by Alfred Wegener in ____. 

    1912
  • He is an Australian geologist, made an analogy between the wrinkles on the surface of a dried shrunken fruit and the mountains on the surface of a cooling earth.
    Eduard Suess
  • Pangaea would later break into two smaller supercontinents, ________ and ________.
    Gondwana and Laurasia
  • Gondwana is composed of ______, __________, _____ _______, _________, and the subcontinent of _____.
    Africa, Antarctica, South America, Australia, India
  • Laurasia was the precursor to ____, _____ _______, and ______.
    Asia, North America, Europe
  • In 1960's American geologist Harry Hess proposed the ________ ________ ______, which states that the seafloors or ocean floors—not the continents—move and carry the continents along.
    Seafloor Spreading Theory
  • In 1960's American geologist _____ ____  proposed the Seafloor Spreading Theory which states that the seafloors or ocean floors—not the continents—move and carry the continents along.

    Harry Hess
  • In ____'s American geologist Harry Hess proposed the Seafloor Spreading Theory,  whiches that the seafloors or ocean floors—not the continents—move and carry the continents along.

    1960
  • The ______ __ _____ _________ incorporates the continental drift theory and the Seafloor spreading theory.
    Theory of Plate Tectonics
  • Plate Tectonics explains that Earth's lithosphere is composed of many independent massive slabs of solid rocks called ______, which floats on an inner pliable mantle.
    Plates
  • How many are the major tectonic plates?
    15
  • How many primary plates are in there?
    7
  • How many Secondary Smaller Plates are in there?
    8
  • Enumerate the primary plates.
    Eurasian Plate, Australian Plate, Pacific Plate, North American Plate, South American Plate, African Plate, and Antarctic Plate.
  • Enumerate the secondary plates.
    Juan de Fuca Plate, Nazca Plate, Cocos Plate, Carribean Platez Philippine Sea Plate, Arabian Plate, Indian Plate, and Scotia Plate.
  • He is a professor and geologist from the University of Texas at Arlington, predicts that the continents will reform into a supercontinent.
    Christopher Scotese
  • Christopher Scotese called the supercontinent _______ ______ (meaning "the Last Pangaea") but later decided to change it to _______ _______ ("The Next Pangaea").
    Pangaea Ultima, Pangaea Proxima
  • He believes that the cycle of a supercontinent splitting into small continents and recombining as a single landmass will continue in the next billion of years.
    Christopher Scotese