Divergent

Our final stop on our Tectonic Tour leads us to the Divergent plates. Divergent plates are when the Tectonic Plates move away from each other. This creates a crack in the Earth and when this happens in the middle of an ocean, the mantle that was underground melts at a lower temperature and releases magma into the surface. The crack is called a ridge and the peak of the ridge is called a rift valley. Here is an image:

http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/geology/grocha/plates/images/divergent.jpg

On May 30th, 2014, I traveled to the famous Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Scientists prove the Mid-Atlantic Ridge was caused because of the divergent Eurasion Plate and North American Plate.
http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/geology/grocha/plates/images/divergent.jpg

I started in Iceland where I could walk through the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, part of the longest mountain range in the world:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/00/Iceland_mid_atlantic_ridge.JPG/220px-Iceland_mid_atlantic_ridge.JPG

I learned that when there are divergent tectonic plates, it causes ridges, riffs, earthquake and volcanic activity.

Convergent:Collision

Next on our journey is to find a convergent collision zone. Convergent-Collision is different from Convergent-Subduction because in collision the two plates converge and both move up to create a mountain range. For example, while the subduction zone has a crust slip underneath another, the collision both push up to create a mountain range. An example of a Convergent-Collision is the Himalayas. We left the Philippines and reached Tibet on May 29th, 2014. Tibet's weather was clear skies and sun. From my hotel room I was able to take a glimpse of the immense Himalayas through the clear sky. Here a picture I took on the Helicopter ride to the Himalayas:
https://projectsource.wikispaces.com/file/view/4260624640_64c6a7b3d4.jpg/128011703/4260624640_64c6a7b3d4.jpg

Breathtaking right? If you want to know how these mountain ranges are formed, let me tell you they don't just magically appear. They are formed when two tectonic plates meet together and both escalate to create a mountain range. Confused? Look at the picture.
http://cf067b.medialib.glogster.com/media/26/26aeb8a9b0a17da220a008ebb4b05f2095e0fe7d8ee74c028bae282ef2d27115/tectonics-collide-jpg.jpg

In Uttarkashi (Garhwal Himalaya) on October 20th, 1991 there was 6.6 earthquake. A trench forms at the bend of a convergence zone. All of the folding and bending causes the plates to break and slip, causing earthquakes. I learned that in convergent zones that are continental-continental, it causes mountain ranges to form and earthquake activity. Which totally explains why the Himalayas formed and why there are often earthquakes in this area.

Convergent: Subduction Zone

http://www.learner.org/interactives/dynamicearth/images/new_map.jpg

This map shows the Tectonic Plate boundaries on Earth. As you can see, the whole world is built upon 7 major tectonic plates, African Plate, Eurasian Plate, Antarctic Plate, Indo-Australian Plate, Pacific Plate, South American Plate and the North American Plate.
Our first stop will be in North America. I traveled to Cowlitz County in WA on May 26th, 2014 with some of my research colleuges to find a subduction zone. More specifically, WA state to find a Subduction Zone. I started out close to home because a few decades ago, a memorable volcanic explosion was spotted here. Mt. St Helens.
http://ww2.hdnux.com/photos/11/33/36/2471813/5/628x471.jpg

I had a flashback to May 18th 1980, I was hiking the Mt. St. Helens mountain when I saw a huge amount of smoke escaping the top of the mountain. At first, I was worried there was a forest fire. Later, I would realize this matter was far above my imagination. As I approached the mountain I could tell the scale of this eruption was by far immense and indescribable. The smoke covered the whole top of the mountain and the closer I got to the mountain, the heat was unbearable. I realized this was a volcanic explosion. Not just any type of volcanic explosion, but a plinian explosion. One of the most powerful explosions including ash and lava.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-jWeS23YP1UvfLgAB0OIAI3KhLsvbPtqbyJowXpb8X5L3Oe4iDFNKoRWaVAcvDpkpylnZ8UAJdPNgS7pnnyljYs_xjIU0gUy27nz8HWNotTfF7flYFbBOvU7zkBoNWfsd0QlqAHOaNnjQ/s1600/x2.gif


The Juan De Fuca plate became a convergent boundary when it did ocean-continental convergence with WA state. When this happened, it created a subduction zone because the ocean is denser than land so  the surface fell beneath the mantle and started to melt. This heat and pressure forced itself to escape which created the Mt. St. Helens eruption and many other volcanoes to explode.

Another subduction zone is found in the Philippines. My colleagues and I took Philippine Airlines from SeaTac. We arrived in the Philippenes on May 28th, 2014. We decided to get a closer look at the subduction zone and asked one of our fellow researchers who worked in the Philippines to give us an explanation of what went on beneath the Philippine floors.
http://www.earthobservatory.sg/files/resources/images/Philippines-Block%20Diagram_0.png

The boundary is the Eurasian Plate and Philippine Plate. The researcher handed us this image, as you can see in the image, this is an example of a ocean-ocean subduction. When the Philippine Plate converges with the Eurasian plate, the Philippine plate falls underneath the Eurasian plate. This causes the crust that fell beneath to heat up and release magma. Therefore resulting in  oceanic volcanoes.

It was a great first journey and I couldn't wait to travel other parts of the world to learn more about tectonic plates.

Intro

Disclaimer: This is a fictional tour

Welcome to Lauren L's Tectonic Tour blog. I will be taking you on my journey across the whole world, in search of tectonic plates. I will be traveling with my research crew and some of my colleagues. We have many connections to all parts of the world so I am looking forward to learning more about tectonic plates for research. I'm not talking about typical tectonic plates, I'll be visiting areas where massive earthquakes, volcanoes or mountains have formed. Now if you want to know how in the world any of these three landscapes are created, follow me on my journey...Let's go!