1. Plate Tectonics, Physical Processes and Influence
The Land
Plate Tectonics, Physical Processes and Influence

2. Landforms Shapes on the planet’s surface
Make up the landscape that surrounds us.
Such as:
Mountains-land that rises higher than 2,000ft
Valleys-areas of low land located between mountains or hills
Plains-Stretches of mostly flat land
Islands-areas of land completely surrounded by water
Peninsula- land surrounded by water on three sides

3. Plate Tectonics Theory of plate tectonics
Suggests that Earth’s surface is divided into a dozen or so slow moving plates, or piece of Earth
Earth’s plate move slowly up to several inches per year

4. Plate Tectonics

5. Continental Drift Theory
Developed by Alfred Wegener
States that the continents were once united as a single continent called Pangea.
According to the theory Earth’s plates shifted over millions of years which resulted in the continents slowly separating
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Earth’s continents still continue to move toward each other and colliding sliding and separating forming our landforms

6. Plates colliding
Plates separating
Plates sliding

7. Plates Colliding Their collision produces distinct landforms
The collision of different types of plates creates different shapes on Earth’s surface such as
Ocean trenches-deep valleys in the Ocean floor
Mountain Ranges
The world’s highest mountain range the Himalayas were formed when the Indian Plate crashed into the Eurasian Plate

8. Plates Separating
As plates move apart, gaps between the plates allow magma, a liquid rock from the Earth’s interior, to rise to the Earth’s crust
As the lava cools it builds a mid ocean ridge or underwater mountain.
The separation of the North
American and Eurasian plates
formed the largest underwater
mountain
The Mid Atlantic Ridge

9. Plates Sliding As plates slide past one another they
Sometimes grind together
This grinding produces
Earthquakes-sudden, violent movements of the Earth’s crust
They often happen along faults or breaks in the Earth’s crust

10. Plates Sliding Cont.
In California the Pacific Plate is sliding by the edges of the North America Plate and has created the San Andreas Fault Zone
The frequent movement this plate produces many earthquakes and volcanic eruptions
The Ring of Fire is located in the region around the Pacific plate and is home to most of the world’s earthquakes and volcanoes

11. Ring of Fire

12. San Andreas Fault

14. Physical Environment Process
The processes that work to change the landforms on Earth’s surface some of which were created by tectonic plates
Weathering
Erosion

15. Weathering Wears away landforms
The process by which rock is broken down into smaller pieces
Several factors can cause rock to break
In the desert- daytime heat and nighttime cooling can cause the rock to crack
Water may get into cracks and freeze, the ice expands with a force that can break a rock
Even roots of trees can pry them apart
These small pieces of rock are called sediments
Once weather has taken place wind, ice and water often move sediments from once place to another

16. Weathering

17. Erosion Changes landforms Wind, Ice and water all cause erosion
They can wear away or build up landforms
Powerful winds often cause erosion, and it can carry sediments across a great distance and can deposit large amounts of sand to form sand dunes(build up)
Glaciers also have the power to cause erosion
Water is the most common kind of erosion
Waves in oceans and lakes can wear away the shore

18. Erosion

19. Weathering and Erosion

20. How landforms influence life
Where people settle
The culture
Influence jobs
Language
Learning ways to adapt or modify