EESA06H3 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Lava, Underplating, Brain Size
15 Oct 2015
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Lecture 4: how continents break up and oceans are born. The importance is, that in these new basins we get new gases, minerals deposited that are crucial for one to know for gas expiration, oil etc. Life cycle of ocean basins: know the three stages; embryonic ocean: red sea and east african. If you see the rim of the pacific ocean, they are surrounded by volcanoes and major earthquakes. It is surrounded by subduction zones where its floors is being pushed down around the surrounding continents. Wilson cycle: named by scientist that discovered it in 60s. Asthenosphere: weak sphere; layer that allows plates to move around the earth"s surface. Continental crust is lower in density that"s why it rides higher in the asthenosphere. Mantle: material below is the asthenosphere; lot of the mantle has not enough water therefore there are dry mantle rocks. Decompression melting is the pressure taken off, as they undergo melting.
