geos3003- The Dynamics of Continents & Basins


	ridge-push and slab pull forces...
	Practical 3: ridge push and slab pull forces. - You can download a PDF version of this Practical. The purpose of this practical to get up close and personal with the concepts of slab pull and ridge push forces. Outcomes: To develop a deeper understanding of the orign and magnitude plate tectonic forces. To develop a deeper understanding of the dynamic of mid-oceanic-ridges and that of active plate margins. To be able to evaluate the magnitude of the Ridge-Push force and of Slab-Pull force. Generic skills: Problem solving ability, computational skills, and analytical skills. Assumed background knowledge: Basic knowledge on isostasy, lithostatic pressure and gravitational potential energy (check out your lecture notes) and Year 12 Mathematics. Tools you may want/need to use one of...: R, Python, MatLab or LiveMath, Excel spreadsheet, calculator... Reading: Turcotte & Schubert: Geodynamics Submission details Individual report due next week at the beginning of the practical class. Should you hand-in your report later, please do not forget to write the date of return on the front page. Some fundamentals Plate tectonic forces are tradictionally understood as forces applied at tectonic plates margins. Ridge push, the push of mid-oceanic ridges on adjacent oceanic lithospheres, is transmitted over hundreds to thousands kilometers and can contribute to deformation along active plate margins as well as deformation inside continents. Slab pull, the pull acting on oceanic slabs, drives subduction and therefore plate motion at the Earth's surface. This force contribute to the dynamic of active plate margins and collisional zones.

Submission details Individual report due next week at the beginning of the practical class. Should you hand-in your report later, please do not forget to write the date of return on the front page.

Submission details
Individual report due next week at the beginning of the practical class. Should you hand-in your report later, please do not forget to write the date of return on the front page.