How many plates are in the lithosphere

While an earthquake safety kit will be of help after an earthquake, the planning conversations you have with your family members before an earthquake are most important. Create an earthquake safety plan for you and your loved ones. CEA offers premium discounts for houses and mobilehomes that have been retrofitted.

Find about the potential geologic threats to your home in case of a major earthquake. The violent shaking from earthquakes can:. If your home was built before , you may have structural risks that could affect your safety.

Follow the Seven Steps to Earthquake Safety. Decrease your risk of damage and injury from a major earthquake by identifying possible home hazards:. Do you know about the primary geologic hazards where you live? Other factors include:. If your home was built before , it may also be vulnerable to serious structural damage. Chemical composition - 'crust' and 'mantle' Mechanical properties - 'lithosphere' and 'asthenosphere' How do plates move?

Plate Tectonics What is a Plate? Chemical composition Mechanical properties When we talk about tectonic or lithospheric plates, we mean the sections into which the lithosphere is cracked.

Major and minor tectonic plates. The mantle lies between Earth's dense, super-heated core and its thin outer layer, the crust. The theory of plate tectonics revolutionized the earth sciences by explaining how the movement of geologic plates causes mountain building, volcanoes, and earthquakes. Join our community of educators and receive the latest information on National Geographic's resources for you and your students.

Skip to content. Twitter Facebook Pinterest Google Classroom. Encyclopedic Entry Vocabulary. Click below to visit our MapMaker Interactive layer displaying the lithosphere's tectonic plates. The lithosphere is thinnest at mid-ocean ridges, where tectonic plates are tearing apart from each other.

Click below to visit our high-resolution map of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The rocky lithosphere includes part of the upper mantle and crust. Photograph by Jennifer Plourde, MyShot. Also called the geosphere. Media Credits The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit.

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Related Resources. View Collection. Plate Tectonics. Earth Structure. The Rock Cycle. Earth's Shifting Tectonic Plates. View Map. View Article. View More Resources. Educational Resources in Your Inbox. An example of physical weathering is wind blowing across the desert playas. This process causes rocks to form a specific pyramid-like shape and they are called ventifacts.

Select from these resources to teach about the process of weathering in your classroom. These tectonic plates rest upon the convecting mantle, which causes them to move. The movements of these plates can account for noticeable geologic events such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and more subtle yet sublime events, like the building of mountains.

Teach your students about plate tectonics using these classroom resources. The structure of the earth is divided into four major components: the crust, the mantle, the outer core, and the inner core.

Each layer has a unique chemical composition, physical state, and can impact life on Earth's surface. Movement in the mantle caused by variations in heat from the core, cause the plates to shift, which can cause earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

These natural hazards then change our landscape, and in some cases, threaten lives and property. Learn more about how the earth is constructed with these classroom resources. The rock cycle is a web of processes that outlines how each of the three major rock types—igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary—form and break down based on the different applications of heat and pressure over time. For example, sedimentary rock shale becomes slate when heat and pressure are added. The more heat and pressure you add, the further the rock metamorphoses until it becomes gneiss.

If it is heated further, the rock will melt completely and reform as an igneous rock. Empower your students to learn about the rock cycle with this collection of resources. The surface of the Earth is made up of tectonic plates that lie beneath both the land and oceans of our planet.

The movements of these plates can build mountains or cause volcanoes to erupt. Earthquakes are more common in some parts of the world than others, because some places, like California, sit on top of the meeting point, or fault, of two plates. When those plates scrape against each other and cause an earthquake, the results can be deadly and devastating. Learn more about earthquakes with this curated collection of classroom resources. According to the United States Geologic Survey, there are approximately 1, potentially active volcanoes worldwide.

Most are located around the Pacific Ocean in what is commonly called the Ring of Fire. A volcano is defined as an opening in the Earth's crust through which lava, ash, and gases erupt. The term also includes the cone-shaped landform built by repeated eruptions over time.