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Geography Compare And Contrast Essay

Decent Essays

1. Compare and contrast the structural features found in convergent and divergent ocean basins.
Beginning with the most obvious difference, divergent ocean basins are essentially two plates which are moving away from one another. Contrasting, convergent ocean basins are essentially two plates moving towards one another. For the second difference, I want to focus on what is happening to the Earth’s crust at each point. In divergent ocean basins, new crust is being formed as the two plates move father and farther away. In contrast, crust is being destroyed at converging ocean basins. Essentially, the two converging plates (and their crust) will collide and form a subduction zone (specific with the crust density). This zone is essentially characterized …show more content…

Submarine canyons can be found at active and passive margins, while deep sea trenches can only be found at active margins. The primary reason for this difference is specific to how submarine canyons and deep sea trenches are formed. If we think back to what occurs at active and passive margins, it becomes apparent that deep sea trenches are only formed from some form of a tectonic collision. Submarine canyons, presenting at passive and active margins, are largely formed by turbidity currents. The last difference between a submarine canyon and a deep sea trench is “placement”/shape. The most apparent location of a submarine canyon is on the down slope of a continental shelf; furthermore, as the slope continues downward the canyon essentially ends by formation of a deep sea fan. While I was supplementing the text, one perfect analogy for a deep sea fan (more of a visual aid) that I found online was those formed at the opening/mouth of a river. Essentially, as sediment continually flows over a specific path, the path begins to erode and you get fan like formations from the mouth. In contrast, deep sea trenches are more prominent and “sharp” in nature. Rather than running perpendicular to a continental slope, deep sea trenches are physical depression originating from the ocean floor and protruding downward in a “V” shaped

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