Table of Contents
How far do tectonic plates move in 100 years?
At an average rate of 33 feet per 100 years (about 10 cm/year), a tectonic plate can move 62.5 miles (about 100 km) in 1 million years.
What is the average distance a tectonic plate moved each year?
Plate Tectonics – A Scientific Revolution. The majority of the research shows that the plates move at the average rate of between approximately 0.60 cm/yr to 10 cm/yr.
How much do tectonic plates move during an earthquake?
These plates are constantly moving (albeit very slowly) at rates up to four inches per year (10 cm/yr) although most rates of travel are considerably less. Also, the rate of travel varies at different locations within each plate.
How fast does a tectonic plate move?
These plates are in constant motion. They can move at rates of up to four inches (10 centimeters) per year, but most move much slower than that. Different parts of a plate move at different speeds. The plates move in different directions, colliding, moving away from, and sliding past one another.
Can tectonic plates be destroyed?
1. Convergent boundaries: where two plates are colliding. Subduction zones occur when one or both of the tectonic plates are composed of oceanic crust. The plate being forced under is eventually melted and destroyed.
What is the fastest moving tectonic plate?
The Pacific, Nazca and Cocos Plates are among the fastest moving plates on Earth, moving at up to 15 centimeters per year. In general, the larger the portion of plate descending back into the earth, the faster the plate moves.
How do moving plates change Earth’s crust?
Remember, the Earth is always changing, always moving. The Earth’s rocky crust (both oceanic and continental) is comprised of a series of plates that float on the semi-solid or magma-like mantle. Convection currents cause the magma to rise and fall, therefore, moving the Earth’s plates in different directions.
How fast are the plates moving?
Tectonic plates move on average about 1 in (2.5 cm) per year—this is about as fast as a fingernail grows.
What is the speed of continental drift?
The average speed of continental drift is between 2 and 20 cm / year—roughly the speed at which your fingernails grow, although not necessarily that smoothly and steadily—so it’s going to take North America and Europe roughly 50,000 years to move one mile apart.