The Sea Floor Spreading Theory

Hess its major tenets gave great support to the theory of continental drift continental drift geological theory that the relative positions of the continents on the earth s surface have.

The sea floor spreading theory.

Seafloor spreading occurs along mid ocean ridges large mountain ranges rising from the ocean floor. Seafloor spreading helps to explain continental drift in the theory of plate tectonics. The mid atlantic ridge for instance separates the north american plate from the eurasian plate and the south american plate from the african plate the east pacific rise is a mid ocean ridge that runs through the eastern pacific ocean and separates the pacific plate from the north american. Seafloor spreading theory that oceanic crust forms along submarine mountain zones known collectively as the mid ocean ridge system and spreads out laterally away from them.

Seafloor spreading theory of lithospheric evolution that holds that the ocean floors are spreading outward from vast underwater ridges. Paleomagnetism led the revival of the continental drift hypothesis and its transformation into theories of sea floor spreading and plate tectonics. This evidence was from the investigations of the molten material seafloor drilling radiometric age dating and fossil ages and the magnetic stripes. First proposed in the early 1960s by the american geologist harry h.

In 1912 when alfred wegener proposed that the continents had once been joined together and had split apart the biggest weakness in his hypothesis was the. The theory of sea floor spreading states that new oceanic crust is being formed continuously at mid oceanic ridges while the older rocks move away from the ridge. That is it explains why the age thickness and density of the oceanic crust increases with distance from the mid oceanic ridge. It leads to the formation of new material on the ridge.

As per seafloor spreading theory the mid oceanic ridge is the region where at the crest of oceanic ridges through the rupture of the oceanic crust and the crack continuous new lava eruption thrusts into it consequently pushing the oceanic crust on either side. The regions that hold the unique record of earth s magnetic field lie along the mid ocean ridges where the sea floor is spreading. When oceanic plates diverge tensional stress causes fractures to occur in the lithosphere. These age data also allow the rate of seafloor spreading to be determined and they show that rates.

Evidence of sea floor spreading. Harry hess s hypothesis about seafloor spreading had collected several pieces of evidence to support the theory. Sea floor spreading theory. The motivating force for seafloor spreading ridges is tectonic plate slab pull at subduction zones rather than magma pressure although there is typically.