Tectonic Plates:)
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Tectonic plates are pieces of the lithosphere, and the pieces move around on the top of the asthenosphere. All the tectonic plates have names, they are Pacific, North American, Cocos, Nazca, South American, African, Eurasian, Indian, Australian, and the Antarctic Plate. When tectonic plates collide, separate, or slide past each other, it may create an earthquake. There are vibrations that go through the earth are called seismic waves. Sea-floor spreading is when new oceanic lithosphere forms from magma when it rises to the surface and then solidifies. This happens at mid-ocean ridges. Scientists use a GPS to measure the rate of of the tectonic plate movement. A fault is a surface where rocks break and slide past each other. There are three types of faults, which are normal, reverse, and strike-slip fault. Uplift is the rising of different parts of the Earth's surface rise to higher elevations. Also subsidence is when parts of the Earth's surface sink to lower elevations. Tectonic plates are a very interesting part of the Earth. ( Holt Science and Technology, Earth Science, pg. 194- 212)