Plate Motion Unit Assessment

Front

What is plate tectonics?

Back

The theory that explains the movement of Earth's plates and how they interact with each other.

Front

What are tectonic plates?

Back

Large sections of the Earth's lithosphere that move and interact at their boundaries.

Front

What happens at convergent boundaries?

Back

Tectonic plates move toward each other, often causing one plate to be forced under another.

Front

What happens at divergent boundaries?

Back

Tectonic plates move apart from each other, creating new crust as magma rises to the surface.

Front

What is a transform boundary?

Back

A boundary where two tectonic plates slide past each other horizontally.

Front

What is subduction?

Back

The process where one tectonic plate moves under another plate and sinks into the mantle.

Front

What is an earthquake?

Back

A sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves.

Front

What is a fault?

Back

A fracture in the Earth's crust where blocks of rock have moved past each other.

Front

What is the lithosphere?

Back

The rigid outer layer of the Earth, consisting of the crust and upper mantle.

Front

What is the asthenosphere?

Back

The semi-fluid layer of the mantle beneath the lithosphere that allows for plate movement.