How do convection currents affect the asthenosphere?

How do convection currents affect the asthenosphere?

Convection currents generated within the asthenosphere push magma upward through volcanic vents and spreading centres to create new crust. Convection currents also stress the lithosphere above, and the cracking that often results manifests as earthquakes.

What are convection currents and how do they affect the asthenosphere?

Heat within the asthenosphere creates convection currents (similar to the currents that can be seen in the lava lamp). These convection currents cause the tectonic plates to move several centimeters per year relative to each other.

Why does convection cycle occur in the asthenosphere?

The heat rising from the Earth’s core creates convection currents in the plastic layer of the mantle (asthenosphere). Convection currents occur because hot fluids are less dense than cold fluids.

What will happen if there is no convection current in the asthenosphere?

If for some reason convection stopped, air would not circulate, and weather would stop. Air wouldn’t flow over the waters, suck up moisture and then rain it out on land. Without this rain, all plants and crops would die.

How the convection current affects the movement of tectonics plates?

Convection currents describe the rising, spread, and sinking of gas, liquid, or molten material caused by the application of heat. Tremendous heat and pressure within the earth cause the hot magma to flow in convection currents. These currents cause the movement of the tectonic plates that make up the earth’s crust.

How does convection current affect plate tectonics?

The convection currents move the plates. Where convection currents diverge near the Earth’s crust, plates move apart. Where convection currents converge, plates move towards each other. The movement of the plates, and the activity inside the Earth, is called plate tectonics .

How does convection current facilitate the movement of lithospheric plates?

How does convection current affects the movement of tectonic plates?

Why is the asthenosphere so important to the theory of plate tectonics?

The asthenosphere is important because it is the force behind the plate tectonic motion and continental drift. It lubricates the plate tectonics. The asthenosphere has a fluid-like properties with high viscosity that the crust rides on.

Why is convection current in the asthenosphere important?

Heat from deep within Earth is thought to keep the asthenosphere malleable, lubricating the undersides of Earth’s tectonic plates and allowing them to move. Convection currents generated within the asthenosphere push magma upward through volcanic vents and spreading centres to create new crust.