Another one for the...
 

[Closed] Another one for the Scientists :; Mid Oceanic Ridge

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ok... my lecturer has set our class another "challenge: question,
so here goes

its all about oceanic Ridges...

"why does ocean depth increase as you go further away from the mid oceaninc ridge"

any ideas,? have spent the past half hour looking but not much luck really? im thinking maybe something to do with ocean currents? maybe not?

Cheers


 
Posted : 25/11/2009 7:15 pm
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further away from the edge of tectonic plates?
two plates moving towards each other push up forming the ridge, and therefore as you move away, the ocean gets deeper?*

*i am not qualified in this subject, and therefore would wait til some of the more knowledgeable on here turn up


 
Posted : 25/11/2009 7:18 pm
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it wouldn't be a ridge unless there were lower bits on either side


 
Posted : 25/11/2009 7:20 pm
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ok.. here is how a oceanic ridge is made...

[img] [/img]


 
Posted : 25/11/2009 7:20 pm
 Stu
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Think about it - particularly the big red bit and see if you can work it out...

[img] [/img]


 
Posted : 25/11/2009 7:21 pm
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I f you've got the guts and the lecturer has a sense of humour i'd go with Scaredypants' answer


 
Posted : 25/11/2009 7:23 pm
 Smee
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Couple of questions for you: What is coming out of the fissure and what happens to it? What is a ridge and how is it formed? How are mountains and rift valleys formed? Answer those and you have your answer.

1st year uni or school?


 
Posted : 25/11/2009 7:24 pm
 Smee
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I would go for scaredypants answer, because its correct.


 
Posted : 25/11/2009 7:25 pm
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right , so im guessing the red area of the magma below causes the rocks below to bulge up... ?


 
Posted : 25/11/2009 7:26 pm
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right so the magma is coming out of the fissure and almost instantly becoming a solid due to the temperature, and the fact its water and not air,
with the rift valley, if i remember correctly thats where two plates move apart causing the area inside to slip down, creating a valley..

and mountains are formed by 2 plates coming together and forcing eachother up..

im guessing that the as you move further away from the ridge, the plates have pulled the further away which has caused more of the newly formed crust to sink further?


 
Posted : 25/11/2009 7:35 pm
 Smee
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mid-ocean_ridge have a look.


 
Posted : 25/11/2009 7:41 pm
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thanks everyone!


 
Posted : 25/11/2009 7:54 pm
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why does ocean depth increase as you go further away from the mid oceaninc ridge

This isn't a question about the ridge itself, but about the nature of the ocean floor.

Oceanic crust is thicker nearest the ridge as it's warmer there. As the crust moves away from the ridge it cools and contracts so the further away from the ridge you get the older the ocean floor, the cooler and thinner the ocean crust, and the deeper the ocean.

So the answer is - further away from the ridge the oceanic crust is older, cooler and thinner, so more room for the sea.


 
Posted : 25/11/2009 8:02 pm
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1st year uni or school?

Surely primary school.... 😯


 
Posted : 25/11/2009 8:17 pm