Mechanism of Plate Tectonics

• There were two major that explain the mechanism of tectonic plates:

  1. Slab Pull Theory
  2. Mantle Convection Theory
• The mantle convection theory was founded and proposed by Arthur Holmes.
• Mantle Convection describes the movement of magma in the mantle as it transfers heat from the white-hot core to the brittle lithosphere.
• The process of Mantle Convection Theory is of the following:

  1. Heat is generated in the Earth's core
  2. The heat slowly rises through the mantle to the asthenosphere
  3. The intrusion of magma through the oceanic ridge pushes the plates away
  4. Plates float on the convection currents of the asthenosphere
  5. The cooling slab of denser oceanic slab sinks into the subduction zone
• The slab pull theory was proposed by Seiya Uyeda, and Donald Forsyth
• According to Slab Pull Theory, gravity and the plates themselves are responsible for plate tectonics via the subduction process.