HiluAliyi_Module01Seafloor Spreading and Uniformitarianism

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Northern Virginia Community College *

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105

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Geology

Date

Dec 6, 2023

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pdf

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2

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Hilu Aliyi Professor Morales Geology 105 24 October 2023 Module 01- Seafloor Spreading and Uniformitarianism Lab 1. Review the concept of seafloor spreading with these videos: o Seafloor Spreading and Plate BoundariesLinks to an external site. o Divergent BoundaryLinks to an external site. Summary: Seafloor spreading is a geological process where a new oceanic crust is formed at mid-ocean ridges and then gradually moves away from the ridge. As the oceanic plates move apart, magma rises from below the Earth’s surface to fill the gap, creating a new crust. This process is a key component of the theory of plate tectonics, providing an explanation for the movement of continents and the geological features of the ocean floor. 2. Perform the following calculations and answer the associated questions. Given: a) Africa and North America are moving away from each other at a velocity (rate) of 3 cm/year. b) Africa and North America are presently 6000 km apart. Required Information: Velocity = distance/time 1 km = 1000 m and 1 m = 100 cm, therefore 1 km = 100,000 cm Calculate (show all work):
a) How long has it been since Africa and North America were adjacent to each other? Time= Distance/ Velocity Time= 600,000,000cm/3cm(a year) Time=200,000,00 years Therefore, it has been 200,000,000 years since Africa and North America were adjacent. b) How far apart have Africa and North America moved since you were born? Years since birth= 2023-2004=19 years Distance= Velocity x Time Distance = 3cm/year x 19 years= 57 cm Therefore, Africa and North America have moved 57 cm in 19 years since I was born. c) What assumption did you make to complete these calculations? Why did you make this assumption? The assumption made in these calculations is that the velocity of the movement between Africa and North America has remained constant over time. This simplifies the assumption because tectonic plate movement rates can vary over geological time scales. Also, this calculation does not consider potential accelerations or decelerations in plate movement. It assumes a constant, average rate of 3cm/year for the sake of the calculation’s simplicity.
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