• Plate Tectonics Key Concepts

    SchoolCenter Picture

    •   Virginia has a billion-year-long tectonic and geologic history.
    •  Virginia has five physiographic provinces produced by past tectonic and geologic activity.
    •  Each province has unique physical characteristics resulting from its geologic past.
    • Geologic processes produce characteristic structures and features.
    • Weathering, erosion, and deposition are interrelated processes.
    • The core, mantle, and crust of Earth are dynamic systems, constantly in motion.
    • Earth's lithosphere is divided into plates that are in motion with respect to one another.
    • Most geologic activity (e.g., earthquakes, volcanoes, and mountain building) occurs as a result of relative motion along plate boundaries.
    • Plate motion occurs as a consequence of convection in Earth's mantle. Plate tectonics is driven by convection in the mantle.
    • There are two different types of crust - oceanic and continental - that have very different characteristics.