Plate Boundaries and Tectonic Plate Movements – Video Notes Review

A set of Q&A flashcards covering plate boundaries (convergent, divergent, transform), key landforms, processes (subduction, trenching, arcs), examples, and the main structural layers involved.

What are the three types of plate boundaries?

Convergent, Divergent, and Transform.

What happens at a divergent plate boundary?

Two plates move away from each other (tensional stress).

Name a major landform formed by divergent boundaries on continental crust.

Rift valley.

What major underwater feature forms at divergent boundaries in the ocean?

Mid-ocean ridge.

What is subduction?

The process where one lithospheric plate sinks beneath another at a convergent boundary.

At Oceanic-Oceanic convergence, what two features typically form?

A deep trench and a volcanic island arc.

At Oceanic-Continental convergence, what features form?

A trench and a volcanic arc (and mountains inland).

What landform results from Continental-Continental convergence?

Mountain ranges (e.g., the Himalayas).

What is a transform plate boundary?

A boundary where two plates slide past each other (shear stress).

Give an example of a transform boundary on Earth.

The San Andreas Fault.

What is a plate boundary?

The place where two plates meet; adjacent plates can crash, pull apart or slide past each other.

What structures are commonly formed at subduction zones?

Trenches and volcanic arcs (island arcs in oceanic-oceanic cases).

What is a volcanic arc?

A chain of volcanoes formed parallel to a subduction zone.

What is an island arc?

A chain of volcanic islands formed at an ocean-ocean subduction zone.

What is a mid-ocean ridge?

An underwater mountain range formed at divergent boundaries along the ocean floor.

What kind of stress is associated with divergent boundaries?

Tensional stress.

What kind of stress is associated with convergent boundaries?

Compression stress.

What is a trench?

A deep valley in the ocean floor formed at subduction zones.

Which boundary interaction forms the Andes Mountains?

Oceanic-Continental convergence.

Which boundary interaction forms the East African Rift?

Divergent boundary (continental).

What is an example of continental-continental convergence?

Himalayas.

What boundary type is associated with the Alps?

Continental-Continental convergence.

What boundary is the San Andreas Fault an example of?

Transform boundary.

What are the two main layers involved in plate tectonics as described in the notes?

Lithosphere and Asthenosphere.

What general boundary-related feature is responsible for many geologic events on Earth?

Plate boundaries (where plates interact).