Chapter 7.1 Japan, country in the ring of fire (part 1)

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Chapter 7.1

Japan, a country in the ring of fire

part 1

The creation of earth plates. 

• The structure of the earth  (G66)
• Convection current  (G67)
• Plates / slabs (G68)
• Different plates (G68)
• Different plate movements (G68)

Earth’s crust is always changing

Natural forces

Exogenic                          Endogenic

change the Earth’s crust                         change the Earth's crust

from the outside                       from the inside

weatering / erosion                             vulcanos/earthquakes

How did continents orginate?

Layers of the earth

Crust: layer we live on, solid and very thin. Made of rocks.

Mantle: thickest layer of the earth, liquid but also moveable. 

 

Layers of the earth

Outer core: liquid also made out of nickel and iron. Cooler around 3000 - 4500 degrees C.

Inner core: solid made out of nickel and iron. Very warm (4000 and 6000 degrees C.)


 

What is convection current?

The fire heats the water from below. The water is getting hot. Hot water rises and cools. Colder water sinks back down and heats up again. The water moves in a circle from top to bottom.

This process also happens in the mantle of the Earth.

Convection current causes fractures and thus the creation of earth plates.

The puzzle pieces of the crust

The crust is broken up into several pieces called tectonic plates.

These plates move around because of convection currents (= movement of liquid rock in the mantle, caused by heat of the inner core).

Plate tectonics = The movement of tectonic plates.

Plate boundaries = The places where two plates meet.

So if you thought Earth plates were formed in the

following way, as in the video Ice Age, then you are

wrong. 

Which part of the Earth consists of tectonic plates?

1. Inner core
2. Outer core
3. Mantle
4. Crust

Plate tectonics is nothing new.

   

The earth's history is filled with plate movements, 250 million years ago all the plates formed one huge supercontinent called Pangea.

Two different earth plates

1. Oceanic plate (Thin but heavy)
2. continental plate (Thick but lighter)

We have two types of tectonic plates:

Oceanic plates:

• Found under oceans, 
• thin (up to 10 kilometres)     but heavier. 
• Made of basalt.

Continental plates:

• Found under continents, 
• thick (up to 75 kilometres)     but lighter. 
• Made of granite.

Basalt

Granite

What do we call the movement of liquid rock in the mantle, caused by heat of the inner core?

1. Plate tectonics
2. Plate boundaries
3. Convection currents
4. Tectonic plates

Three different plate movements

1. Plates move away from each other = divergent movement
2. Plates move toward each other = convergent movement
3. Plates slide alongside each other = transform movement

Read G66 - G67 - G68

Do assignment 3-5-6 on the geo online.