What is the plate tectonics drift theory?

The idea of continental drift has been subsumed by the theory of plate tectonics, which explains how the continents move.According to the generally accepted plate-tectonics theory, scientists believe that Earth's surface is broken into a number of shifting slabs or plates, which average about 50 miles in thickness. These plates move relative to one another above a hotter, deeper, more mobile zone at average rates as great as a few inches per year. Most of the world's active volcanoes are located along or near the boundaries between shifting plates and are called plate-boundary volcanoes.

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13 Comments

Char

Char, loved lol

Char

Larry, I would say the first is a part of the second helped on by volcanics and collision factors. We are adrift by those forces..

Char

I lobed this in college..it was so interesting on induction and subduction.. Made perfect sense..

tbear

George Oliver Prince, 👍😊

tbear

Todd Cates, 👍😊

Larry

In essence this question is not current scientific thought, in fact, hasn't been since the 1960s. Plate tectonics replaced continental drift as the active theory behind why our planet seems to move continents around like puzzle pieces. Continental drift was an explanation where the continent's were afloat in a sea of magma with currents similar to the ocean currents. However, using survey ships to describe the ocean floor as a complex set of volcanic ridges and deep troughs where the ocean floor is thrust (subducted) below continental crust. The result of this subduction is continental volcanism. This is evident all around the Pacific Ocean, the ring of fire. On the other side of the world you get the mid Atlantic ridge, which resulted in the expansion of the Atlantic ocean basin and separation of South America from Africa and the separation of Laurasia into Eurasia and North America. To put this into a time frame, this was occurring while dinosaurs roamed the earth, and is a likely reason for bird migration. It also caused the Indian subcontinent to crash into Asia the result of which formed the Himalayan mountains. This changed weather patterns of the world, creating the monsoons of southeast Asia and the desertification of the Sahara. Please get rid of this question as it is not correct as stated.

John W Shreve

George Oliver Prince, You are 480 years old, right?

Cheryl Perkins

Living in the shakey isles (NZ) you grow up knowing this.

Joseph A. Robitaille

An easy question, well covered in our society.

William Laughlin

Anthony Ward, Is Evolution a Theory or a Fact? It is both. In everyday usage, "theory" often refers to a hunch or a speculation. When people say, "I have a theory about why that happened," they are often drawing a conclusion based on fragmentary or inconclusive evidence. The formal scientific definition of theory is quite different from the everyday meaning of the word. It refers to a comprehensive explanation of some aspect of nature that is supported by a vast body of evidence. Scientific theories ARE facts!