any examples of an area today?
2007-08-29 06:08:45 · 3 answers · asked by angie 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Earth Sciences & Geology
The earth has two types of crust, oceanic and continental, and a passive continetal margin is a particular type of junction between these two types of crust.
First some background...
Oceanic crust is relatively thin and has a basaltic composition, and forms the floors of the oceans, and only rarely pokes above sea level. Continetal crust is much thicker, and on average has a more granitic compostition. Most of the major land masses and the shollow seas that surround them, are floored by continetal crust.
A passive continental margin, is where continental crust passes directly into ocean crust without any plate boundary being present (hence it is passive). The passive margin usually coincides roughly with bottom of the continetal slope.
Almost all of the edge of the Atantic is passive continetal margin - i.e. the east coast of N and S America, the west coast of Europe, and the west coast of Africa.
2007-08-29 07:07:25 · answer #1 · answered by Andrew 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Passive Continental Margin
2016-09-29 22:10:11 · answer #2 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Continental Margin Definition
2016-12-14 05:51:18 · answer #3 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A passive continental margin is the coastline of a continent which has wide and shallow continental shelves, comprised of thick sedimentary wedges derived from long erosion of the continent; it is contrasted with an active margin, which has narrow, relatively steep shelves, due to frequent earthquakes that move sediment out to sea. Most of the coastlines of the Atlantic Ocean are passive continental margins.
2007-08-29 06:57:29 · answer #4 · answered by DavidK93 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
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RE:
what is a passive continental margin?
any examples of an area today?
2015-08-18 20:27:07 · answer #5 · answered by Mackenzie 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋