Chapter 2.6 | Transform Plate Boundaries

Transform Plate Boundary

plates slide horizontally without producing/destroying lithosphere

Where are most transform boundaries found?

joining 2 segments of oceanic ridge system (fracture zones), connect spreading centers or trenches

What does the shape of the mid-Atlantic Ridge reflect?

shape of the rifting that broke Pangaea up

Fracture Zones

linear breaks in the seafloor with active transform fault & inactive extensions, perpendicular to the offset ridges

What is the inactive zone of a fracture zone?

movement in the same direction

Describe the active transform fault in a fracture zone:

between the offset ridge segments, weak & shallow earthquakes, seafloor moving away from each segments

Fracture zones are _____ to ridge segments but _____ to plate motion

perpendicular, parallel

How do transform faults relate to subduction zones and spreading centers? Provide an example:

can transport ridge crests & new oceanic material to subduction zone, Juan de Fuca subduct beneath NA

What are examples of transform faults cutting through the continents?

San Andreas, Alpine (New Zealand)

Describe the San Andreas Fault

transform boundary, connects spreading center in CA gulf to Cascadia subduction, pacific plate moving northwest, right-lateral motion, offsets wallace creek