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Title
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The Moving Surface
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Type
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Primary: Laboratory
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Operation
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Tectonic Fury
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Mission:
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Mission 4: Earth on the Move
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Print Page
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103
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Subjects
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Science | Earth and space science | Earth processes | Plate tectonics | Earth system structure | Lithosphere | Mantle | Science as inquiry | Science process skills | Analyzing data | Collecting data | Communicating | Experimenting | Hypothesizing | Modeling | Observing | Predicting | Scientific habits of mind
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Grades
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5 | 6 | 7 | 8
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Keywords
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plate tectonics, plate movement, plate boundary, divergent boundary, convergent boundary, model, map, convection current, Dr. Walter Smith, landform, topographic map
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Duration
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01:30:00 (HH:MM:SS)
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Audience
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Teachers | Elementary Grades | Junior High
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Created On
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5/7/2010
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Copyright
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Interiot/Wikimedia Commons
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From: Tectonic Fury Mission 4: Earth on the Move (pp: 103) |
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The Moving Surface In this lab, students will model a theory of convection that may be causing the tectonic plates to move and creating the features Dr. Walter Smith sees on his maps. Using this model, students will then experiment with factors that may affect the convection process and the features created at the surface. |
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Even though more than 70 percent of Earth's surface is covered in water and a majority of this area has never been explored, Walter Smith is continually updating his maps of the ocean floor. Using the data provided by satellites, he has discovered a range of landforms that exist on the ocean floor, including ocean trenches, mountains, and underwater volcanoes. Many of these features are believed to be associated with tectonic plate movement. As a result, his maps provide scientists with the ability to see things they never knew existed before, and help them develop better models of the tectonic processes that are shaping Earth's surface.
In this activity, you will model a theory of convection that may be causing the tectonic plates to move and creating the features Dr. Smith sees on his maps. Using this model, you will then experiment with factors that may affect the convection process and the features created at the surface.
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| Materials |
- Lab 1 Data Sheet
- clear baking dish
- vegetable oil
- container of dried spices
- spoon
- polystyrene pieces
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- supports for baking dish
- string
- ruler
- tape
- heat source
- marker
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| Lab Prep |
- Place the clear baking dish on the supports in the center of the table.
- Fill the dish at least half full with oil and mix a spoonful of spice into the oil.
- Use the ruler, tape, and string to divide the dish into four equal quadrants: A, B, C, and D.
- Place the heat source under the middle of the dish as shown in the data sheet.
- Heat for about five minutes, then make observations.
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| Make Observations |
- Describe the effect of the heat source on the oil in different parts of the dish by observing the movement of the spice (e.g., near the edges, on top of the oil and near the bottom of the oil).
- Predict what you think will happen if you put a piece of polystyrene in each quadrant.
- Test your hypothesis by placing the polystyrene in quadrant A. Record your results. Continue for each quadrant. How did your predictions compare with your observations?
- How could you make two pieces pull away from each other? Try it and record your observations. What does this represent?
- How could you make one piece crash into the other? Try it and record your observations. What does this represent?
- Coat the top of the oil with spice. Looking from the side, observe and describe the movement of spice in the oil. Observe and describe the interaction between the spice in the oil and the spice on top.
- What part of Earth does the spice layer on top represent? What part of Earth does the oil represent? What part of Earth does the heat source represent? What type of plate boundary was created in the spice layer?
- Look at the plate boundary and topographic maps in the data sheet. Find and highlight the boundaries where the type of crustal movement you observed in your dish is occurring.
- Describe some features that are created at or near these locations.
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| Extension |
Design an experiment using a different variable, such as adding heat sources or changing the heat source location, temperature, or thickness of lithosphere. With your instructor’s approval, conduct your experiment.
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Journal Question
Describe the processes which may cause Earth’s lithosphere to move and break at the surface. |
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