A Lesson in Plate Tectonics

Way back in 1912 a scientist by the name of Alfred Wegener came up with a crazy idea. He noticed that all of the continents seemed to fit together like the pieces of a giant puzzle. He thought, "Maybe they were once all joined together in a single, giant landmass that broke up and drifted apart over time?"...Read more

A Geologic History of Earth

Since we can only measure as far back in time as we had solid rock on this planet, we are limited in how we can measure the real age of the earth. Due to the forces of plate tectonics, our planet is also a very dynamic one ...Read more

Geomagnetic Anomalies

By collecting and measuring samples of rock from various locations along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, scientists have discovered that the newest, youngest crustal rocks are located in the center of the ridge...Read more

Mid-Ocean Ridges

Many spreading boundaries are located deep in the ocean on the sea floor. These are places where volcanic activity is at a premium because the crust is being torn apart.....Read more

Hot Spots

Scientists thought that volcanoes only happened at plate boundaries, but nobody could explain why they were happening out in the middle of a tectonic plate...Read more

Plate Boundaries

Scientists from different disciplines began putting together the pieces they found and defined the different types of plate boundaries...Read more