Plate Tectonics

Introduction

Plate tectonics is a theory, not a law, because scientists don't always fully understand the mechanisms of how the plates move. It is, however, a plausible or scientifically acceptable general principle or body of principles offered to explain phenomena.

Plate tectonics explains the global distribution of:

• Volcanoes
• Earthquakes
• Faults
• Mountain belts
• Features of seafloor
• In addition to the evolution of continents and oceans

Plate tectonics is not a stand-alone concept;  rather, it is a synthesis of hundreds of ideas from thousands of scientists, including those from the hypotheses of Continental Drift, Sea Floor Spreading, and Paleomagnetism.