seafloor spreading

noun

a process in which new ocean floor is created as molten material from the earth's mantle rises in margins between plates or ridges and spreads out.

Words nearby seafloor spreading

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British Dictionary definitions for sea-floor spreading

sea-floor spreading
/ (ˈsiːˌflɔː) /

noun

a series of processes in which new oceanic lithosphere is created at oceanic ridges, spreads away from the ridges, and returns to the earth's interior along subduction zones Also called: ocean floor spreading

Scientific definitions for sea-floor spreading

sea-floor spreading

In the theory of plate tectonics, the process by which new oceanic crust is formed by the convective upwelling of magma at mid-ocean ridges, resulting in the continuous lateral displacement of existing oceanic crust. See more at magnetic reversal.