Question

Scientists have observed that on either side of a mid-ocean ridge there are mirror-image stripes or rocks with different magnetic orientations. This information led scientists to infer that the sea floor was spreading as new rocks were formed at the ridge. What is this inference an example of?

Answer 1

Seafloor spreading is a process that occurs at mid-ocean ridges, where new oceanic crust is formed through volcanic activity and then gradually moves away from the ridge. Seafloor spreading helps explain continental drift in the theory of plate tectonics.

Answer 2

This pattern of stripes could represent what scientists see on the seafloor. Note that the stripes are symmetrical about the central dusky purple stripe. In the oceans, magnetic stripes are symmetrical about a mid-ocean ridge axis. What could cause this? What could it possibly mean?