Plate Tectonics

This picture shows where

the plate tectonics are on

Earth.

By: Nicole Human

The world we know today was not always this way. It is believed that many, many years ago all land masses were joined together. They were called supercontinents. The plate tectonics caused the split of the land into continents that we know today.

Over a billion years ago, all the land was clumped together in one big piece of land. It was believed the land split apart and then joined together again. Around 250 million years ago during the time of the dinosaurs all the continents were all connected called supercon-tinents. Around 180 million years ago the land masses began drifting apart from each other again to what continents we know today. It is believed that they are still drifting apart today. They are moving no more than 20 centimeters in a year.

Example of 20

centimeters.

This is what the

continents use to

look like.

This is what the

continents look

like now.

North America and South America are slowly moving apart from Europe and Africa. That would mean that the Atlantic Ocean would be getting bigger and the Pacific Ocean is getting smaller. In several million years the Pacific Ocean would disappear. And the West coast of North America will hit Japan and China forming another large land mass.

This is a picture of the continents when they were moving.

Plate tectonic is a scientific theory that describes the large motions of Earth’s lithosphere. This is earth’s outer shell. The lithosphere is made up of moving, big pieces called plates. These plates are underneath the land and water. These plates are made of hard rock. Underneath the hard rock is a weak layer of melted rock. The plates are moving constantly over the weaker layer.

There is believed to be seven or eight major plates and many minor plates.

This is a picture of

what is happening

with the plate.

These plates move in relation to one another three different ways. The three different kinds of bounda-ries are called Convergent Boundaries, Divergent Boundaries, and Transform Boundaries. Convergent boundaries are where plates col-lide into each other.

Divergent boundaries are when the mantle in the crust rises towards the surface of the Earth and pushes apart two or more plates.

Transformed boundary is where two plates side past each other. (Above and below each other.)

These three boundaries are

related to plates.

Earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanoes occur along these plate boundaries.

An earthquake is the result of a sudden burst of energy in the Earth’s crust that creates waves. Earthquakes happen when two plate tectonics hit each other. Earthquakes can cause bad damage to houses, buildings, stores, roads, and railroad tracks. Earthquakes are measured on the Richter scale. The Richter scale is a scale based on the strongest point of the earthquake which is rated 1-10. The center of an earthquake is called the epicenter. The epicenter is the part of the Earth’s surface

directly above the focus of the earthquake.

A earthquake turned

railroad tracks into

spaghetti. An earthquake split this

building in half.

Earthquakes can happen at any time of the day such as in the morning, afternoon, and evening. It also can happen when your sleeping. They can be as small as .1 and as big as 10 on the Richter scale. The Richter scale

is what is used to measure the magnitude of the earthquake.

This is what

happens after a

small earthquake.

This is what hap-

pens after a big

earthquake.

This is a Richter Scale.

As the number on the scale increases so does the damage.

A seismograph is used to detect earthquakes and how big the are. The size of the earthquake can be 1-10. You never want to be near any items that can fall on you during a earthquake. You would want to be underneath a table.

This is a seismograph.

This is what it

would look like after

a earthquake would

happen on the

seismograph.

The effects of an earthquake on different parts of the world. The following are the effects of one in California back in 1994 and one in Haiti two years ago in 2010 of about the same magnitude. Haiti, January 12, 2010, 7.0 on Richter scale. • 316,000 died • 330,000 injured • 2,000,000 homeless • 14 billion dollars in damage Northridge California January 17, 1994 6.7 on Richter scale. • 33 died • 8,700 injured • 0 homeless • 20 million dollars in damage

California earthquake—Northridge 6.7 on Richter scale.

Northridge damage.

Haiti January 10, 2010.

7.0 on Richter scale.

The damage of the earthquake in California is much less then Haiti due to the construction of the buildings and roads . California has building codes that are required for new buildings. The codes result in earthquake resistant buildings but not earthquake proof buildings. These codes are intended to protect people. Steel frame high rises and newer wood frame low rise buildings make for safer structures.

Steel Bridge

Steel frame of Building

A tsunami is a series of waves. A tsunami is a result of an earth-quake. This happens when the ocean water is pushed upwards and a wave is formed. Tsunamis can get as big as 100 feet or more. The speed of a tsunami can get up to 500 miles.

These are pictures

of a tsunami.

A volcano is an opening or rup-ture in the planets surface which allows the hot magma to escape from below the surface. The Earth’s thinnest layer (crust) is broken into large pieces are called plate tectonics. The plates

sit above the hot, liquid mantle. Huge currents of molten circle deep in the mantle. Then the lava will come out. Volcanoes can also form where there is stretching and thinning of the Earth’s crust. When volcanoes erupt it can cause many hazards. Volcanic ash can be a threat to aircraft.

This picture shows

the Earth’s crust.

These pictures are

volcanoes.

Pictures

This is a picture of a

volcano erupting.

An earthquake

made this road

collapse.

One of the biggest tsunami was in Krakatoa, In-dia in 1883. The waves were up 130 feet in the air. And it killed 36,500 people that day.

One of the biggest earthquake in the world was in Chile. It was in 1960. 1,655 killed, 3,000 injured, 2,000,000 homeless, and $550 million dollars in damage.

This is a tsunami.

This is a picture of the damage of a building after the earthquake in Chile.

Random Facts

• In one year the continents move 20 centimeters away from one another.

• In several hundred years the Pacific Ocean will disappear and North America will smash into

Japan and China. Earthquakes: • The largest earthquake in the Untied States was 9.2 in Price William’s Sound in Alaska.

• The largest earthquake in the world was 9.5 in Chile on May 22, 1960.

• Earthquakes kill about 8,000 people a year. • Over 4,000 years approximately 13 million people have died during an earthquake.

• An average earthquake lasts about a minute. • In ancient Greece, people believed that the god of the sea caused earthquakes.

Tsunamis: • Tsunami waves are often only 1 to 3 feet tall. • Tsunami waves can travel at speeds of 600 miles per hour.

• If caught in a tsunami wave you should not start swimming it is better to grab on to something to stay afloat.

• The state at greatest risk for a tsunami is Hawaii.

• The 2011 Japan tsunami is estimated to be-come the worlds most expensive disaster in history.

Volcanoes: • The lava in a volcano can get up to the temperature of 1,300 to 2,200 degrees. • There are 1,510 active volcanoes in the world.

• 80 or more are under the oceans. The seven continents have the following populations: • The population in Asia is 4,055,000,000. • The population in Africa is 1,108,500,000. • The population in Europe is 729,871,042. • The population in North America is 522,807,432.

• The population in South America is 379,919,602.

• The population in Australia is 20,434,176. • And in Antarctica there are no permanent residents but up to 4,000 researchers in the summer and 1,000 in the winter.

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