Exploring The Ocean
Vocabulary:
- Mid-Ocean ridge: a continuous range of mountains
- Trench: In some places, deep, steep-sided canyons
- Continental slope: At the edge of the shelf, the ocean floor drops off in a steep incline.
- Abyssal plain: Beyond this slope is abyssal plain, a smooth and and nearly flat area of the ocean floor.
- Sea mount: completely underwater.
- Continental shelf : Extending out from a continent's edge is a gently sloping, shallow area.
- Volcanic island: A volcano above the water line
QUESTION :
- What factors make it difficult to explore the ocean floor?
- Why doesn't Earth get larger when new rock is added to the ocean floor at the mid-ocean ridge?