area of land dropping steeply towards deep ocean basins. 75-mile shallow flat area just off coastlines. thick deposits of sediments carried out from land.
Q. Where are continental shelves wider?
The widest continental shelf in the world extends 1,210 km (750 miles) off the coast of Siberia, Russia, into the Arctic Ocean. Continental shelves are an extension of coastal plains and are characterised by broadly-sloping submerged plains.
Table of Contents
- Q. Where are continental shelves wider?
- Q. What factors account for differences in width of continental shelves?
- Q. What is most of the continental shelf covered by?
- Q. Which answer best describes the continental shelf?
- Q. What is the deepest part of the Pacific Ocean called?
- Q. Why does the seafloor get shallower as you approach each continent?
- Q. Is the continental rise part of the continental plate?
- Q. What is the difference between an active and passive continental margin?
- Q. What is the deepest topographic region of an ocean?
- Q. What are 3 pieces of evidence that support seafloor spreading?
Q. What factors account for differences in width of continental shelves?
Tectonic setting The shelf width ranges from broad to narrow, depending on the age and configuration of the plate boundaries. The broadest continental shelves are found on passive, trailing continental margins associated with wave erosion and limited sediment input.
Q. What is most of the continental shelf covered by?
Most continental shelves are broad, gently sloping plains covered by relatively shallow water. Water depth over the continental shelves averages about 60 meters (200 feet). Sunlight penetrates the shallow waters, and many kinds of organisms flourish—from microscopic shrimp to giant seaweed called kelp.
Q. Which answer best describes the continental shelf?
Continental shelf, a broad, relatively shallow submarine terrace of continental crust forming the edge of a continental landmass. The geology of continental shelves is often similar to that of the adjacent exposed portion of the continent, and most shelves have a gently rolling topography called ridge and swale.
Q. What is the deepest part of the Pacific Ocean called?
Challenger Deep
Q. Why does the seafloor get shallower as you approach each continent?
Seafloor spreading occurs at divergent plate boundaries. As tectonic plates slowly move away from each other, heat from the mantle’s convection currents makes the crust more plastic and less dense.
Q. Is the continental rise part of the continental plate?
The continental rise is a low-relief zone of accumulated sediments that lies between the continental slope and the abyssal plain. It is a major part of the continental margin, covering around 10% of the ocean floor.
Q. What is the difference between an active and passive continental margin?
An active continental margin is found on the leading edge of the continent where it is crashing into an oceanic plate. Passive continental margins are found along the remaining coastlines.
Q. What is the deepest topographic region of an ocean?
The deepest parts of the ocean are within the subduction trenches, and the deepest of these is the Marianas Trench in the southwestern Pacific (near Guam) at 11,000 m (Figure 18.5).
Q. What are 3 pieces of evidence that support seafloor spreading?
Look at Figure 19 to see the process of sea-floor spreading. Several types of evidence from the oceans supported Hess’s theory of sea-floor spreading-evidence from molten material, magnetic stripes, and drilling samples.
