Plate Tectonic Vocabulary Durham Middle School 6th Grade Science Department

Density The ratio of mass of a substance to the volume of a substance. Density=Mass Volume Density is the how much matter (mass) there is in a certain amount of space. Click image

Theory of Plate Tectonics Theory that the Earth’s lithosphere is divided up into tectonic plates that move around on top the asthenosphere. Click picture

Transform Boundary The boundary between tectonic plates that are sliding past each other Click image

Earthquakes A sudden movement of the lithosphere. Click image

Convection Currents The Continual circular motion of molten rock within the mantle that causes movement of the tectonic plates. Click image

Faults A break in a body of rock along which one block slides relative to another.

Richter Scale The scale used to measure the strength of earthquakes. The Richter magnitude scale (also Richter scale) assigns a magnitude number to quantify the energy released by an earthquake. Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=33&v=NaNw9LHq9dc

Sea-floor spreading The process by which new oceanic lithosphere forms as magma rises toward the surface and solidifies. Bill Nye Video Link https://safeshare.tv/submit?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwa tch%3Fv%3DGyMLlLxbfa4

Convergent boundary The boundary formed by the collision of two lithospheric plates. Converge = come together. Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=17&v=xqeKxh6NI IE

Divergent boundary The boundary between two tectonic plates that are moving away from each other.

Seismic Waves A wave of energy that travels through the earth and away from an earthquake in all directions. Seismic waves are also a result of volcanic eruptions, magma movement, large landslides and large man-made explosions