Table of Contents
What is subduction zone simple definition?
A tectonic process in which one tectonic plate is forced beneath another and sinks into the mantle as the plates converge.
Which is the subduction zone?
subduction zone, oceanic trench area marginal to a continent in which, according to the theory of plate tectonics, older and denser seafloor underthrusts the continental mass, dragging downward into the Earth’s upper mantle the accumulated trench sediments.
Why is the subduction zone?
Subduction zones happen where plates collide. When two tectonic plates meet it is like the immovable object meeting the unstoppable force. However tectonic plates decide it by mass. The more massive plate, normally a continental will force the other plate, an oceanic plate down beneath it.
What is a subduction zone and how does it form?
Where two tectonic plates converge, if one or both of the plates is oceanic lithosphere, a subduction zone will form. An oceanic plate will sink back into the mantle. There is a deep ocean trench where the oceanic plate bends downward.
What is the meaning of subducting?
Definition of subduction : the action or process in plate tectonics of the edge of one crustal plate descending below the edge of another.
What is subduction in science?
When tectonic plates converge, one plate slides beneath the other plate, or subducts, descending into the Earth’s mantle at rates of 2-8 centimeters (1–3 inches) per year.
What do you need to know about the subduction zone?
What is a Subduction Zone? IF you don’t know anything about plate tectonics you might be wondering about what is a subduction zone. A subduction zone is a region of the Earth’s crust where tectonic plates meet. Tectonic plates are massive pieces of the Earth’s crust that interact with each other.
How does a tectonic plate disappear in the subduction zone?
It is possible for a whole tectonic plate to disappear. This happens when the plate goes through subduction faster than new material can be added to the plate through seafloor spreading. The spreading pushes the plate slowly toward the subduction zone until the whole thing disappears.
How are mountain ranges formed in subduction zones?
The first is mountain formation. Subduction zones always have mountain ranges caused by plate subduction. The next is volcanic activity as a plate is subducted the pressure and heat turns it into magma.
Is the western coast of South America a subduction zone?
A convergent plate boundary where one plate subducts beneath the other, usually because it is denser. The western coast of South America is roughly coincident with a subduction zone in which a plate consisting of ocean floor is subducting beneath the continental mass of South America.