Sea Floor Spreading Divergent Boundary

Seafloor spreading is the usual process at work at divergent plate boundaries leading to the creation of new ocean floor.

Sea floor spreading divergent boundary.

These age data also allow the rate of seafloor spreading to be determined and they show that rates vary from about 0 1 cm 0 04 inch per year to 17 cm 6 7 inches per year. Does sea floor spreading occur at a convergent boundary answers no. Seafloor spreading occurs at divergent plate boundaries. This magma cools to form a new crust of igneous rock.

The spreading however is generally not uniform causing linear features perpendicular to the divergent boundaries. As tectonic plates slowly move away from each other heat from the mantle s convection currents makes the crust more plastic and less dense. In this way the rugged volcanic landscape of a mid ocean ridge is created along the plate boundary. Most active divergent plate boundaries occur between oceanic plates and exist as mid oceanic ridges.

Divergent plate boundaries two plates move apart upwelling of hot material from the mantle to create new seafloor 2 4 list three types of plate boundaries and describe the relative motion at each of them. On earth magma forms by partial melting of silicate rocks either in the mantle continental or oceanic crust. Samples collected from the ocean floor show that the age of oceanic crust increases with distance from the spreading centre important evidence in favour of this process. Magma rises up from the mantle and oozes out from the cracks like a long thin undersea volcano.

When a divergent boundary occurs beneath oceanic lithosphere the rising convection current below lifts the lithosphere producing a mid ocean ridge. Extensional forces stretch the lithosphere and produce a deep fissure. As two tectonic plates slowly separate molten material rises up from within the mantle to fill the opening. When the fissure opens pressure is reduced on the super heated mantle material below.

Divergent boundaries in the middle of the oceans cause seafloor spreading. Divergent boundaries also form volcanic islands which occur when the plates move apart to produce gaps that molten lava rises to fill. Seafloor spreading occurs at a divergent boundary. The less dense material rises often forming a mountain or elevated area of the seafloor.

Because of this the youngest sea floor can be found along divergent boundaries such as the mid atlantic ocean ridge. As upwelling of magma continues the plates continue to diverge a process known as seafloor spreading.