Why do tectonic plates collide?

As the plates move around the earth, they meet other plates and when one plate is in the way of another, they collide. It is a little like 2 cars meeting head on, only cars stop rather than hit each other. Different things happen when there is a tectonic collision. read more

Dive and Discover : Plate Tectonics : Collide. When two plates carrying continents collide, the continental crust buckles and rocks pile up, creating towering mountain ranges. The Himalayas were born when the Indian subcontinent smashed into Asia 45 million years ago. read more

Depending on the type of plates that collide, they either lift or subduct. When an oceanic plate collides with a continental plate, it typically slides underneath it. If two like plates collide, they crush together at the collision point and lift up broken material from both plates. read more

Learning Objectives n Students will describe the motion of tectonic plates. n Students will compare and contrast three typical boundary types that occur between tectonic plates. n Students will describe the plate boundaries that occur at the Chile Triple Junction. read more