Antarctic Plate
E10083
The Antarctic Plate is a major tectonic plate underlying the continent of Antarctica and surrounding Southern Ocean, playing a key role in global plate motions and seafloor spreading.
Statements (49)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
major tectonic plate
→
tectonic plate → |
| affects |
Antarctic seismicity
→
Antarctic topography → Southern Ocean bathymetry → global ocean circulation → |
| age |
mostly Mesozoic to Cenozoic oceanic crust
→
|
| borders |
African Plate
→
Indo-Australian Plate → Nazca Plate → Pacific Plate → Phoenix Plate remnant → Scotia Plate → South American Plate → |
| contains |
continental crust of Antarctica
→
oceanic crust of Southern Ocean → |
| formedBy |
breakup of Gondwana
→
|
| hasBoundaryType |
convergent boundary
→
divergent boundary → transform boundary → |
| hasFeature |
Antarctic Peninsula margin
→
East Antarctic craton basement → Transantarctic Mountains support → West Antarctic Rift System → fracture zones in Southern Ocean → subduction zones at Scotia margin → |
| locatedIn |
Southern Hemisphere
→
|
| motionDirection |
northward relative to mantle
→
|
| motionType |
mostly divergent with surrounding plates
→
|
| namedAfter |
Antarctica
→
|
| partOf |
Earth lithosphere
→
|
| roleIn |
Antarctic Circumpolar Current development
→
global plate motions → opening of Southern Ocean basins → seafloor spreading → |
| separatedFrom |
African Plate
→
Australian Plate → South American Plate → |
| studiedIn |
marine geophysics
→
plate tectonics → polar geology → |
| surroundedBy |
American-Antarctic Ridge
→
Pacific-Antarctic Ridge → Scotia Arc region → Southeast Indian Ridge → Southwest Indian Ridge → mid-ocean ridges → |
| underlies |
Antarctica
→
Southern Ocean seafloor → |