Plate Margins Flashcards

All 4 cards in this deck

What happens at a constructive plate margin?

Two plates move apart; magma rises to fill the gap and forms new crust, with gentle-sided volcanoes and low-magnitude earthquakes.

What happens at a destructive plate margin?

Two plates move towards each other and the denser oceanic plate is subducted beneath the less dense continental plate and melts, causing explosive composite volcanoes and strong earthquakes.

Why do earthquakes happen at a conservative plate margin?

Plates move past each other at different speeds, friction makes them stick, pressure builds and is released as an earthquake.

True or false? Volcanoes are found at conservative plate margins.

False. There are no volcanoes at a conservative margin because no crust is created or destroyed.