Students were asking for more data on the plate activity where volcanoes are happening. Here's what we came up with!
1. Volcanoes are occurring on coastlines where oceanic and continental plates touch.
2. Their movement seems to be towards one another. This was puzzling, since we think of volcanoes as exposing the mantle. With a little more thought and returning to our physical models, we are thinking the following:
2. Their movement seems to be towards one another. This was puzzling, since we think of volcanoes as exposing the mantle. With a little more thought and returning to our physical models, we are thinking the following:
If oceanic plates always go under a continental plate because oceanic plates are more dense, what happens to the stuff that's on top of oceanic plates--like the sediment and water?
"Well...it's hotter as you go deeper, so those sediments and water would heat up. The sediments would melt, and the water would boil and evaporate. And wait, if there's a continental plate on top of all this, wouldn't the pressure build up like a pot on the stove that has a lid on it?"
"Well...it's hotter as you go deeper, so those sediments and water would heat up. The sediments would melt, and the water would boil and evaporate. And wait, if there's a continental plate on top of all this, wouldn't the pressure build up like a pot on the stove that has a lid on it?"
This idea wasn't taken lightly! We did some research by reading an article to further prove this idea. Yes, volcanoes are happening when the oceanic plate subducts, or goes under the continental plate...and that's when the magic happens!
So if we've figured out a lot about what happens when plates come together, what exactly happens when plates move apart? Check out our ideas we're claiming happen! There's only one way to figure out if our claims are right--gather some evidence from where plates are moving apart!