Table of Contents
Where do continental and oceanic plates collide?
Ocean-Continent Convergence. When oceanic crust converges with continental crust, the denser oceanic plate plunges beneath the continental plate. This process, called subduction, occurs at the oceanic trenches. The entire region is known as a subduction zone.
When a continental plate and an oceanic plate collide they can form?
When an oceanic plate converges with a continental plate, the oceanic crust will always subduct under the continental crust; this is because oceanic crust is naturally denser. Convergent boundaries are commonly associated with larger earthquakes and higher volcanic activity.
What happens when an oceanic plate collides with a continental plate with a newer oceanic plate?
When an oceanic and a continental plate collide, eventually the oceanic plate is subducted under the continental plate due to the high density of the oceanic plate. As time goes on the hot magma rising upward from the subduction zone causes further compression of the mountain belt.
What happens when two oceanic plates collide?
When two plates converge, the result is called a collision. When two plates collide, the density of the plates determines which one comes out on top. Oceanic crust becomes cooler and denser as it spreads away from the mid-ocean ridge.
Which is heavier an oceanic plate or a continental plate?
Because of their heavy ferromagnesian elements, oceanic plates are much denser than continental plates. The average density of ocean plates is approximately 200 pounds per cubic foot, while continental crust ranges between about 162 and and 172 pounds per cubic foot.
When two oceanic plates collide what forms?
Two oceanic plates converge. Islands form an arc when two oceanic plates converge creating a row of islands above the overriding plate. The older plate, which is heavier and denser, is forced beneath the lighter plate.
What is zone formed where two oceanic plates collide?
A subduction zone is also generated when two oceanic plates collide – the older plate is forced under the younger one – and it leads to the formation of chains of volcanic islands known as island arcs. Examples include the Mariana Islands in the western Pacific Ocean and the Aleutian Islands, off the coast of Alaska.