Sea Floor Spreading Occurs At What Type Of Boundary

Subduction and sea floor spreading are processes that could alter the size and form of the ocean.

Sea floor spreading occurs at what type of boundary.

Seafloor spreading occurs at a diversion boundary. It is a type of plate boundary that move away from euchre s a result of the spreading of boundaries new ocean floor is created. The mid atlantic ridge for instance separates the north american plate from the eurasian plate and the south american plate from the african plate the east pacific rise is a mid ocean ridge that runs through the eastern pacific ocean and separates the pacific plate from the north american. For instance the atlantic ocean is believed to be expanding because of its few trenches.

Spreading rate is the rate at which an ocean basin widens due to seafloor spreading. The rate at which new oceanic lithosphere is added to each tectonic plate on either side of a mid ocean ridge is the spreading half rate and is equal to half of the spreading rate. This mainly happens on the ocean floor and results in mid ocean ridges. Spreading rates determine if the ridge is fast intermediate or slow.

The age of the sea floor also supports sea floor spreading. What did scientist use to prove the the seafloor was spreading apart. This graphic shows several ocean floor features on a scale from 0 35 000 feet below sea level. See also continental drift a veritable legion of evidence supports the seafloor spreading hypothesis.

If sea floor spreading operates the youngest oceanic crust should be found at the ridges and progressively older crust should be found in moving away from the ridges towards the continents. The magnetic patterns of the earth reverse themselves every 400 to millions of years. The discovery of such magnetic stripes provided powerful evidence that sea floor spreading occurs. Seafloor spreading occurs along mid ocean ridges large mountain ranges rising from the ocean floor.

The following features are shown at example depths to scale though each feature has a considerable range at which it may occur. Due to this continuous seafloor spreading occurs and makes atlantic ocean floor to be connected to other continental crust making the ocean gets wider over the time. Continental shelf 300 feet continental slope 300 10 000 feet abyssal plain 10 000 feet abyssal hill 3 000 feet up from the abyssal plain seamount 6 000 feet.