Plate Tectonics Links Plate Tectonics - Theory The Pangaea Theory - Continental Drift This site is very interactive and even includes games if you follow the links. There are many animations showing how the continents may have moved over geologic time. (Theory of continental drift). Evidence Supporting Continental Drift This site does not have a lot of exciting pictures and animations but it does list and explain the evidence for the theory of "Continental Drift" very well. In case you were wondering, this site clears up the misconceptions. Savage Earth - The Earth's Crust This is the PBS site on the Earth's Crust. It is part of the "Savage Earth" series and has many animations, movies and pictures as well as thorough information about topics concerning the Earth's crust. Plate Boundaries This is a site full of easy-to-understand and easy-to-navigate web pages. If you want a straight forward presentation of plate tectonics, this is it. This site is part of the Exploring the Environment project of NASA. It is in line with their Classroom of the Future vision. Understanding Plate Boundaries This site is sponsored by the USGS and is a great summary of plate boundaries. The 3 major types of plate boundaries (divergent, convergent and transform) are explained. Don't miss the link to how Mt Everest was formed by the collision of India with the euraisian plate. Another good link to follow shows a detailed map of the Ring of Fire (an area of increased incidence of earthquakes and volcanoes). This is the most likely site on the West Coast where a megathrust earthquake could occur. The last such earthquake at this location happened in 1700AD and had a magnitude of 9.0. Plate Tectonics Animations This is the website component for your textbook. It has many animations to watch and it helps to given meaning to what you read. Besides chapter 8, also look at chapters 9, 10 and 11 for the effects of plate movement. Earth Plate Tectonics Animations This page is a list of plate tectonic animations. The animations must be clicked on to be seen, however, a each one has a description. In addition, the animation can be paused and replayed. This is a quicktime movie of a oceanic plate subducting or moving underneath a continental plate. Notice how this causes the formation of volcanoes as the older oceanic plate is melted back into the Earth's mantle. This animation was created by NOAA's Ocean Explorer project. History of Earth - Plates Animation Page This is a page of VR animations ( after the animation loads, click and drag your mouse over the image). When you drag your mouse over the image, colors will appear to indicate the path of the tectonic plates and their effect on the relative positions of the continents. USGS Plate Tectonics Animation Page This is the USGS (US Geological Survey) page for animations about plate tectonics. There are many interesting animations here to explore. Tsunami (what is a tsunami?) This sequence of web pages shows how a tsunami forms when an oceanic plate slides under (subducts) a continental plate. This can cause a vertical fracture which displaces millons of tons of water. The page is from the Savage Earth series sponsored by PBS. This links to a quicktime movie that shows how the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami spread across the Indian Ocean. Notice that the wave did not decrease in intensity until it hit land. The animation was created by N.O.A.A. (The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.) This is an online book that describes in detail how the early warning system works in Hawaii where Tsunamis are a common threat. The site is co-sponsored by the National Weather Service and N.O.A.A. Check out pages 15 and 16 to see how tsunamis behave out at sea. Plate Tectonics Games This game is multiple choice with one question per page. There is a link relating to each question so that if you don't know the answer, you can look it up. In this game, the object is to match the vocabulary term to the definition. Plate Tectionics - Concentration This game requires that the user uncover matching pairs of cards. Multiple choice. Click next to the right answer. Select from a list of terms that are provided. Link to correct answers. Label Sea-floor Spreading Diagram Select from a list of terms that are provided. Link to correct answers. ©2005 Ms. Phoenix |