Ocean Floor Mapper | VariableVista

Step 1

Scan the ocean basin

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The seafloor is hidden. Move the vessel from Papua New Guinea toward Peru. Only measured sections will be revealed.

Vessel position

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Depth —

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Step 2

Build the depth profile

Each sonar measurement adds one point to the profile.

Step 3

Label the ocean-floor features

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The terms are randomized each time the model loads or resets. Select one, then click its location on the completed depth profile.

Complete the seafloor scan before placing labels.

Step 4

Predict plate motion

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Use the ridge and trench in your measured profile to predict the direction of plate motion.

Pacific–Nazca ridge

Predict how the plates move on opposite sides of the ridge.

Pacific Plate Nazca Plate

Peru–Chile trench

Predict how the plates move where oceanic crust meets South America.

Nazca Plate South American Plate

Complete the seafloor scan, then make all four predictions.

Step 5

Record your interpretation

Which feature is the shallowest part of the submerged continent? Which feature provides evidence that new ocean crust may form? Which feature suggests that one plate is moving beneath another? How does the depth profile support your plate-motion predictions?

This is a simplified classroom transect. The real plate system near Papua New Guinea includes several smaller plates and complex boundaries.