Transcript How the Earth`s Surface Changes

How the
Earth’s
Surface
Changes
Tectonic Plates
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14 major plates
Move about 5 cm. a year
Fit together like puzzle pieces
Build up pressure as they move
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/geology/tectonics.html
How plates collide and pull apart.
Tectonic plates continued
• When plates collide into each other it forms
mountains and volcanoes on the crust
• When plates pull apart (diverge) from each
other it forms earthquakes and volcanoes on
the crust
• When plates slide past each other it forms
earthquakes, mountains, and volcanoes on the
crust
Plates collide/crash together to
form mountains and volcanoes.
Plates pull apart to form
earthquakes and volcanoes.
Plates slide past each other to form
earthquakes and volcanoes.
So now that the earth has landforms,
do those landforms ever change? If so,
HOW?
(How landforms change)
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Water
Heat from the sun
Wind
Ice
Mass movement (a big mass of rocks or
snow falling a long distance like off of a
mountain top.)
• Root pry
Weathering
• Weathering is the process of breaking
down rock into soil, sand, and other tiny
particles called sediments.
Erosion
• Erosion is the process of moving sediment
from one location to another.
Erosion
Erosion
Deposition
• Deposition is the process of dropping off
or depositing sediment in a new location.
How water changes the earth’s
surface:
• Rainfall
• Rivers
• Waterfalls
How wind can change the earth’s
surface:
• Winds pick up sediments and dust
particles and carry them long distances.
• Strong winds can blow hard against rock
and break it down.
How ice can change the earth’s
surface:
• Glaciers grind the land as they move
slowly on the land.
• Glaciers pick up sediments as they move
and deposit in different locations.
How mass movements can change
the earth’s surface:
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Mud slides
Avalanches
Rock slides
Sink holes
Creep (soil and grass on bridges)