The tectonic plates are lithospheric plates, the main building block of Earth's crust, including that underneath water bodies. According to the Theory of Plate Tectonics, the Earth has seven major or primary plates: the North American, South American, African, Antarctic, Indo-Australian, Eurasian and Pacific. The Arabian, Nazca and Scotia Plates do not have any recognized tertiary plates. There are also 8 secondary tectonic plates that are smaller than the primary plates. It basically explains how and why formations such as volcanoes and mountains came about, as well as why earthquakes and tidal waves happen. The boundaries between plates are where major earth activity occurs, such as volcanoes, earthquakes and the formation of mountains and ocean trenches. Adjacent plates sometimes move in parallel directions along their boundary, which is called a strike-slip fault. These are often grouped with their associated primary or secondary plates. There are seven main tectonic plates on earth. The Arabian, Nazca and Scotia Plates do not have any recognized tertiary plates. On average the pates are about 100km (61mi) thick, but the overall size of the plates varies greatly. That's a lot of plates in the mantle. There were two tectonic plates in the Pacific Ocean during that time, including the Kula and the Farallon. Most of the 14 major plates, have 1-5 tertiary plates associated with them. Although the seven major plates of the Earth comprise most of the continental surface and the Pacific Ocean, the secondary plates cover the rest of the Earth's surface. Are There Days When our Dreams Don't Come True? That era was not long before the mass extinction event that killed all of the dinosaurs. Plate tectonics have deceptively slow movement. The Pacific Plate includes most of the Pacific Ocean as well as part of Southern California. On average the pates are about 100km (61mi) thick, but the overall size of the plates varies greatly. These are the Arabian Plate, Caribbean Plate, Cocos Plate, Indian Plate, Juan de Fuca Plate, Nazca Plate, Philippine Sea Plate and the Scotia Plate. These are the Capricorn and Indian Plates of the Indo-Australian and the Nubian and Somali Plates associated with the African. Tectonic plates are pieces of Earth's crust and uppermost mantle, together referred to as the lithosphere. Strictly speaking, a tectonic plate is formed by slabs of lithosphere (comprising the crust and rigid part of the upper mantle) which float upon, and may penetrate, the asthenosphere (convecting mantle) in subduction zones. Let us together unravel the mysteries and all that lies beyond ordinary human perceptions! There are eight total secondary plates. Almost all the tertiary plates are microplates, very small in a global sense. Become a Maps.com Explorers Club member! The tectonic plates are in constant motion due to the heat of the mantle, but they move around very slowly at a rate of 5-10 cm per year. The final 3 main tectonic plates are: the African Plate (Africa, the eastern South Atlantic and western Indian Ocean); the Indo-Australian Plate (India, Australia, New Zealand and most of the Indian Ocean); and the Pacific Plate (including the majority of the Pacific Ocean and southern coasts of California). The tectonic plates are in constant motion due to the heat of the mantle, but they move around very slowly at a rate of 5-10 cm per year. My last post had 52 (wrong) when the answer seems to be 55. Scientists believe that over millions of years, these tectonic plates float around, driven by convection currents in the asthenosphere, gathering into supercontinents and scattering again. Methuselah Foundation, the Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence, and the Lifeboat Foundation. In addition, there are dozens of minor, tertiary plates. Flowers Will be Planted There, How Many People Disappear Each Year Without a Trace, How was the Theory That Pyramids Were Built by Slaves Disproven, After Decades of Attempts: Astronomers Photograph Black Hole for First Time.

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