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WorksheetsContinental Drift & Plate Tectonics
Total questions: 25
Worksheet time: 12mins
Why do tectonic plates move?
Because of Earth's magnetic field
Because of convection currents in the asthenosphere
Because of Earthquakes
Because the asthenosphere is more dense
How are rift valleys formed?
Divergent -continental
Divergent -oceanic
Convergent -continental-continental
Transform
How do divergent boundaries change Earth's surface?
They create volcanoes and deep ocean trenches
They create subduction zones
They cause earthquakes that break up rock
They allow magma to reach the surface to create new crust
What boundary are mid-ocean ridges formed at?
Divergent -continental
Convergent -continental, continental
Divergent -oceanic
Convergent -continental, oceanic
Point W shows a convection current in the asthenosphere. How do convection currents happen?
Water in the mantle is being heated by the hot core. This causes the water to rise towards the crust, then sink as it cools. This creates a convection current that moves the tectonic plates.
Magma in the mantle is being heated by the hot core. This causes the magma to rise towards the crust, then sink as it cools. This creates a convection current that moves the tectonic plates.
Energy from the Sun heats the crust, which conducts heat into the mantle. This causes the magma to warm and sink toward the core, moving the tectonic plates.
Rocks in the asthenosphere fall up and down. The Earth's magnetic field is what causes the rocks to fall (when the poles are reversed)
What happens at a oceanic-continental convergent boundary?
The oceanic plate is more dense so it is subducted beneath the continental plate forming a deep ocean trench and volcanoes
The oceanic plate is less dense so it is subducted beneath the continental plate forming a deep ocean trench and volcanoes
The continental plate is more dense so it is subducted beneath the continental plate forming a deep ocean trench and volcanoes
The continental plate is less dense so it is subducted beneath the continental plate forming a deep ocean trench and volcanoes
At what boundary was the San Andreas fault created?
Convergent -continental, oceanic
Divergent -continental
Divergent -oceanic
Transform
Do transform boundaries create new crust?
yes
no
yes, but only underwater
yes, but only on land
The Mesosaurus fossils were found in South America and in Africa... but nowhere else. Why?
The fossils evolved into different organisms
The climate changed
The Mesosaurus swam across the ocean from South America to Africa
South America and Africa were once a part of the same continent
What is the theory of Plate tectonics?
The denser plate sinks under the less dense plate and goes into the mantle
Earth's plates are constantly moving and changing shape.
Glossopteris and Mesosaurus once lived together on one continent.
New crust is formed on ocean basins due to a divergent boundary
How are mountains formed?
Convergent -oceanic, continental
Divergent -oceanic, oceanic
Transform -continental, continental
Convergent -continental, continental
What forms when an oceanic plate collides with a continental plate?
Earthquake
Deep ocean trench
Tsunami
Rift Valley
Which is more dense: Oceanic Plate or Continental Plate?
Oceanic
Continental
Pangaea is the name of...
The fossils that were found in Africa and South America
The mountain chains that aligned across North America, Greenland, Europe, and Africa
The supercontinent that existed millions of years ago that has now drifted apart
The layer of Earth in which convection currents move tectonic plates
Sea-floor spreading occurs because...
new material is being added to the asthenosphere.
earthquakes break apart the ocean floor.
sediments accumulate on the ocean floor.
hot, less-dense material below Earth’s crust is forced upward toward the surface.
How do convection currents move?
Colder, denser magma rises, while warmer, less dense magma sinks
Colder, denser magma sinks, while warmer, less dense magma rises
Solid magma sinks, while liquid magma floats
Colder less dense magma rises, while warmer more dense magma sinks
What was the ONE piece of evidence that Wegener was missing, therefore the theory was rejected by most scientists?
He did not know that the continents fit together like a puzzle
He did not have fossil evidence that lined up across the continents
He did not know that convection currents in the asthenosphere cause lithospheric plate to move
He did not know that mountain ranges lined up across North America, Greenland, and Europe
What were the three main pieces of evidence that Wegener had to prove continental drift (pick the three)
Fossils
Convection Currents
Climate
Geologic
Sea-Floor Spreading
Which number shows a divergent boundary?
1
2
3
4
Which number shows a subduction zone?
1
2
3
4
What "motion" do we say for convergent boundary?
colliding
sliding
dividing
What "motion" do we say for transform?
Colliding
Dividing
Sliding
Which desribes what happens during subduction?
The denser plate collides with the less dense plate at a transform boundary
The denser plate is pushed below the less dense plate at a convergent boundary
The denser plate slides past the less dense plate at a transform boundary
The denser plate divides from the less dense plate at a divergent boundary
The Dino-Chomper fossil was found in the Sahara Desert. What would a paleontologist infer about the past climate of the desert?
That the Sahara has always been a desert
That the Sahara was once a tropical, swampy area
That the Sahara was once completely under water
That the Sahara was once filled with mountains
What causes sea-floor spreading?
Convection currents that push magma to the surface
Earthquakes
The Inner core when it flips
Transform boundaries that push magma to the surface
