How are ocean trenches formed quizlet?

How are ocean trenches formed quizlet?

Ocean trenches are deep sections of the ocean where an oceanic plate is usually sinking below a continental plate. They are formed in the subduction zone as the denser oceanic plate is subjected under the continental plate.

What are trenches in the ocean called?

deep-sea trench, also called oceanic trench, any long, narrow, steep-sided depression in the ocean bottom in which occur the maximum oceanic depths, approximately 7,300 to more than 11,000 metres (24,000 to 36,000 feet). They typically form in locations where one tectonic plate subducts under another.

What is the subduction process?

A tectonic process in which one tectonic plate is forced beneath another and sinks into the mantle as the plates converge.

How do trenches and ridges form?

Trench: very deep, elongated cavity bordering a continent or an island arc; it forms when one tectonic plate slides beneath another. Ridge: underwater mountain range that criss-crosses the oceans and is formed by rising magma in a zone where two plates are moving apart.

What is it called when a lithospheric plate descends into the mantle?

Subduction is the tectonic process at convergent margins by which slabs of oceanic lithosphere descend into the mantle.

What are the characteristics of oceanic trenches quizlet?

At a converging plate boundary, the denser oceanic plate will undergo subduction at the subduction zone, resulting in a depression aka oceanic trench. The depression maybe formed by the convergence of Two oceanic plates, of which the denser plate go through subduction. You just studied 3 terms!

How trench is formed?

In particular, ocean trenches are a feature of convergent plate boundaries, where two or more tectonic plates meet. At many convergent plate boundaries, dense lithosphere melts or slides beneath less-dense lithosphere in a process called subduction, creating a trench.

Where are trenches formed?

Trenches are long, narrow depressions on the seafloor that form at the boundary of tectonic plates where one plate is pushed, or subducts, beneath another.

What is earthquake process?

Earthquakes are usually caused when underground rock suddenly breaks and there is rapid motion along a fault. This sudden release of energy causes the seismic waves that make the ground shake. The earthquake is over when the fault stops moving. Seismic waves are generated throughout the earthquake.

What is the process of mountain formation?

The world’s tallest mountain ranges form when pieces of Earth’s crust—called plates—smash against each other in a process called plate tectonics, and buckle up like the hood of a car in a head-on collision. The Himalaya in Asia formed from one such massive wreck that started about 55 million years ago.

What is formed at the trench trench?

Trenches are formed by subduction, a geophysical process in which two or more of Earth’s tectonic plates converge and the older, denser plate is pushed beneath the lighter plate and deep into the mantle, causing the seafloor and outermost crust (the lithosphere) to bend and form a steep, V-shaped depression.

How is a trench formed on the ocean floor?

Trenches are formed by subduction, a geophysical process in which two or more of Earth’s tectonic plates converge and the older, denser plate is pushed beneath the lighter plate and deep into the mantle, causing the seafloor and outermost crust (the lithosphere) to bend and form a steep, V-shaped depression.

What are some famous trenches?

The Sunda Trench, the most-famous and most-destructive area of the Indian Ocean, was once called the Java Trench. Located in the northeastern corner of the Indian Ocean, the famous trench is the source of the 9.0 earthquake that in 2007 caused the destructive tsunami in Indonesia and India.

What animals live in deep sea trenches?

Animals that live in ocean trenches are quite diverse. They range from bacteria and microorganisms to fish, jellyfish, crabs, lobsters, and octopi. More specifically, tubeworms and deep-sea angler fish are two examples.

What are the names of the oceanic trenches?

The Mariana Trench and the Challenger Deep. The Mariana Trench is the deepest of all ocean trenches. Formed by the same plates that created the Philippine Trench , the Mariana Trench is just northeast of that slightly shallower one, to the east of the Mariana Island chain and just south of Japan.