What are deep ocean trenches associated with?
Deep-sea trenches generally lie seaward of and parallel to adjacent island arcs or mountain ranges of the continental margins. They are closely associated with and found in subduction zones—that is, locations where a lithospheric plate bearing oceanic crust slides down into the upper mantle under the force of gravity.
What do oceanic trenches represent?
Oceanic trenches are a feature of the Earth’s distinctive plate tectonics. They mark the locations of convergent plate boundaries, along which lithospheric plates move towards each other at rates that vary from a few millimeters to over ten centimeters per year.
How are deep ocean trenches related to plate boundaries quizlet?
How are deep-ocean trenches related to plate boundaries? Deep-ocean trenches are sites of plate convergence where an oceanic plate subducts under another plate. New oceanic crust and lithospheric mantle are generated by the cooling of molten rock upwelling from the mantle.
How are deep ocean trenches related to plate boundaries where do they occur What is the deepest location on Earth?
subduction zones
Trenches are formed through subduction, which occurs when tectonic plates collide and push one plate beneath the other. Trenches can be found all over the surface floor of the ocean at subduction zones. The Mariana trench is the deepest known point in the ocean at over 35,000 feet deep.
What happens at a deep ocean 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.
Where are deep ocean trenches formed?
Ocean trenches form on tectonic plate boundaries where the dense plate subducts below the less dense plate due to plate movement. These destructive plate boundaries result in a steep V-shaped valley or trench on the ocean floor. Ocean trenches occur in all the world’s ocean basins.
Why are deep ocean trenches associated with convergent boundaries?
Ocean trenches are a result of tectonic activity, which describes the movement of the Earth’s lithosphere. At many convergent plate boundaries, dense lithosphere melts or slides beneath less-dense lithosphere in a process called subduction, creating a trench.
Where do deep ocean trenches occur quizlet?
Where does a Deep-Ocean Trench occur? A convergent plate boundary where one continental plate and one oceanic plate collide.
How do deep ocean trenches form quizlet geology?
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.
How are deep ocean trenches related to plate boundaries?
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.
Why deep trenches are formed on the ocean floor?
Which is the most studied deep ocean trench?
Probably the most studied trench is the Mariana Trench, which has attracted even non-scientists. In 2012, film director James Cameron was lowered into the Challenger Deep inside a specialized capsule to get a look at the area.
What causes discomfort near a deep ocean trench?
Another reason for discomfort near ocean trenches is the tremendous pressure of being underwater that deep.
How is the Mariana Trench in the Pacific Ocean formed?
The Mariana Trench, in the South Pacific Ocean, is formed as the mighty Pacific plate subducts beneath the smaller, less-dense Philippine plate. In a subduction zone, some of the molten material—the former seafloor—can rise through volcanoes located near the trench.
How are subduction zones related to the ocean trench?
Subduction Zones When the leading edge of a dense tectonic plate meets the leading edge of a less-dense plate, the denser plate bends downward. This place where the denser plate subducts is called a subduction zone. Oceanic subduction zones almost always feature a small hill preceding the ocean trench itself.