Ridge push happens at spreading centers where plates are moving apart. New parts of a plate rise because they are warm and the plate is thin. As hot magma rises to the surface at spreading ridges and forms new crust, the new crust pushes the rest of a plate out of its way. This is called ridge push.

Recent research has shown that the major driving force for most plate movement is slab pull, because the plates with more of their edges being subducted are the faster-moving ones. However, ridge push is also presented in recent research to be a force that drives the movement of plates.

Heat and gravity are fundamental to the process The energy source for plate tectonics is Earth’s internal heat while the forces moving the plates are the “ridge push” and “slab pull” gravity forces. It was once thought that mantle convection could drive plate motions.

Ridge push is caused by the potential energy gradient from the high topography of the ridges. Slab pull is caused by the negative buoyancy of the subducting plate.

Seafloor spreading is the natural process responsible for ridge push.

Two plates pushed together create a convergent fault. If one plate is oceanic and the other continental, the edge of the oceanic plate will be pushed down. When two plates move away from each other they create a divergent boundary. When this happens under oceans, new ocean floor is created.

A divergent boundary occurs when two tectonic plates move away from each other. Along these boundaries, earthquakes are common and magma (molten rock) rises from the Earth’s mantle to the surface, solidifying to create new oceanic crust. When two plates come together, it is known as a convergent boundary.

The main driving force of plate tectonics is gravity. If a plate with oceanic lithosphere meets another plate, the dense oceanic lithosphere dives beneath the other plate and sinks into the mantle. The sinking oceanic lithosphere drags the rest of the tectonic plate and this is the main cause of plate motion.