Lecture 4

Plate Tectonics & the Structure of the Earth  

Today's objectives -

• To learn the basic structure of the Earth, including: the crust, mantle and core.
• To learn what is meant by “plate tectonics”.
• To learn how plates interact.
• To understand how plate interaction controls many geologic processes.

 Vocabulary -

Crust –
Mantle –
Upper Mantle –
Asthenosphere –
Lower Mantle –
Core –
Outer Core –
Inner Core –
Plate Tectonics –
Plates –
Plate Motion –
Continental Drift –
Rifting –
Oceanic Crust –
Transforms –
Convergence –
Subduction Zones –
Continents –  
Hot spots –

Lecture Outline -

The Earth’s dimensions
Seismology as a deep probe
The crust: oceanic and continental
The mantle: upper, asthenosphere, lower
The core: outer and inner
Plate tectonics and the lithosphere
Plate movement

the past
driving forces

Spreading centers
Transform boundaries
Collision and subduction
Plate tectonics and geology