Question

According to plate tectonics, how many plates the earth is made up of?
A) 10
B) 15
C) 20
D) 5

Answer 1

Hint: Plate tectonics study the movement of the earth’s surface and it suggests that the outer shell of the earth is divided into several plates that glide over the inner rocky layer.

Complete answer: Earth has mountains and oceans whose location and height can change and can be studied by plate tectonics, i.e. features and movement of the surface of the earth in the past and present that can be studied and compared. It is a theory that suggests that plates surrounding the earth are very rigid and hard compared to the earth’s existing mantle. This rigid layer is known as the lithosphere that is 60 miles thick. The lithosphere is made up of the earth’s crust and the outer part of the mantle. The earth is considered to have 15 significant structural plates. Out of 15, Seven of them are essential plates and the rest are auxiliary plates. The essential plates comprise the African plate, the Antarctic plate, the Eurasian plate, the Indo-Australian Plate, the North American plate, the Pacific plate, and the South American plate, whereas auxiliary plates comprise the Arabian Plate, the Caribbean Plate, the Cocos plate, the Juan de Fuca plate, the Indian plate, the Nazca plate, the Philippine Sea Plate and the Scotia plate.
Hence, the correct answer is option B.

Note: The plates are named after the landforms found on them. The Pacific plate is considered to be the largest plate, approximately 39,768,522 square miles. It is mostly located under the ocean. There are few smaller plates throughout the world.