Plate Tectonics Quiz

What is the theory that explains the structure and behavior of the Earth?

• Continental Drift

• Plate Tectonics

• Theory of Relativity

• Theory of Evolution

Who proposed the idea of continental drift and the supercontinent Pangaea?

• Alfred Wegener

• Marie Tharp

• Harry Hess

• Bruce Heezen

What evidence did Alfred Wegener use to support his theory of continental drift?

• Spatial distribution of fossils

• All of the above

• Location of rock types

• Trends of mountain ranges

What did the physiographic map of the Atlantic ocean floor reveal?

• All of the above

• Mountains and valleys

• Deep trenches

• Flat featureless plain

What is the process by which new seafloor is formed and old seafloor is recycled?

• Plate collision

• Continental drift

• Subduction

• Seafloor spreading

What is the name of the fracture lines that crisscross the mid-oceanic ridges?

• Trenches

• Fault lines

• Continental shelves

• Mid-Atlantic Ridge

What is the name of the process where the oceanic crust is pushed beneath the continental crust?

• Seafloor spreading

• Subduction

• Plate collision

• Continental drift

Which type of plate boundary is characterized by plates moving away from each other?

• Divergent boundary

• Convergent boundary

• Collision boundary

• Transform boundary

What is the name of the giant trench formed by the subduction of the Nazca plate beneath the South American plate?

• Himalayas

• Peru Chile Trench

• San Andreas Fault

• East Pacific Rise

What is the name of the mountain range formed by the collision of the Indian plate with the Eurasian plate?

• Andes

• Rocky Mountains

• Himalayas

• Alps