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Website
University of California

Mid Ocean Ridge

For Students 9th - 10th
An article from Scientific American details some recent discoveries about the ridge systems. "New maps reveal striking details of how segments of the Ridge form and evolve."
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Website
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Polar Discovery: Arctic Seafloor Expedition: July 1 Aug. 10, 2007

For Students 9th - 10th
This polar expedition to study the Arctic seafloor took place in 2007, but you can still enjoy following the footsteps of these scientists. The goal of the expedition was to see if there were active hydrothermal vents on the ocean...
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Website
NOAA

Noaa: New Millennium Observatory (Ne Mo)

For Students 9th - 10th
NeMO is a seafloor observatory at an active underwater volcano! NeMO "background" is a great place to begin your scientific journey under the sea. Site includes virtual tours, daily updates from the sea, teacher resources and more.
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Unit Plan
American Museum of Natural History

American Museum of Natural History: Find a Vent

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn all about hydrothermal vents deep in the ocean and how scientists locate them. Then take a virtual expedition to the Juan de Fuca Ridge in the north Pacific and see if you can discover a new deep sea vent.
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Website
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Woods Hole Oceanography Institute: Geology and Geophysics

For Students 9th - 10th
This webpage has two videos related to mid-oceaninc ridges. One of them examines the traits of hydrothermal vents and why their study is important. The other one describes the process by which new oceanic crust is created.
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Activity
US Geological Survey

Usgs: Plate Tectonics and Mid Oceanic Ridges

For Students 9th - 10th
Excellent graphics and understandable text about all aspects of plate tectonics including mid-ocean ridges.
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Handout
US Geological Survey

Usgs: Understanding Plate Motions

For Students 9th - 10th
The U.S. Geological Survey provides descriptions and illustrations for the plate boundaries of the Earth's surface.
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Website
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute: Mid Ocean Ridges: Types of Ridges

For Students 9th - 10th
A detailed, interactive look at the mid-oceanic ridge. Learn more about slow and fast spreading ridges and how the polarity of the ocean floor helps determine the speed of spreading.
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Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Global Earthquakes Activity and Seafloor Features

For Students 3rd - 5th
Students will examine patterns between volcanic activity and seafloor features. NASA tracked volcanic activity for 15 years and created an animated map from their data. Compare this map to a map of seafloor features to reveal interesting...
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Website
Other

Cause of Ridges

For Students 9th - 10th
Details one man's explanation for the formation of mid-oceanic ridges.
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Handout
Australian Museum

Australian Museum: Plate Tectonic Processes

For Students 9th - 10th
A comprehensive site on plate tectonics and the Earth. Read how the oceanic and continental crusts, as well as the heat and the pressure within the Earth affect plate tectonics.
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Unit Plan
CK-12 Foundation

Ck 12: Earth Science: Mesozoic Plate Tectonics

For Students 9th - 10th
[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] How Pangaea split apart and formed the Atlantic Ocean.
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Unit Plan
CK-12 Foundation

Ck 12: Earth Science: Earth's Tectonic Plates

For Students 9th - 10th
Earth's tectonic plates and how they move.[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.]
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Website
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute: Dive and Discover: Expeditions to Sea Floor

For Students 9th - 10th
Join Woods Hole scientists as they search for new volcanic eruptions on the ridge system in the eastern Pacific.
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Activity
Other

Paleomap Project

For Students 9th - 10th
Virtual reality animation map showing continental drift from 200mya to the present. The animation map is small but effective in showing the positions of the land masses.
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Handout
University of California

Ucmp: Plate Tectonics: The Mechanism

For Students 9th - 10th
A basic description of the driving force behind plate movement. Describes major features of the ocean floor including mid-oceanic ridges.
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Handout
Science Struck

Science Struck: How Was the Mid Atlantic Ridge Formed?

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn what the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is, how it was formed in the Triassic Period, the volcanic activity that takes place there, and the benefits and negative impact of this activity.
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Unit Plan
CK-12 Foundation

Ck 12: Earth Science: Tectonic Plate Motions

For Students 9th - 10th
Earth's tectonic plates and how they move. [Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.]
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Interactive
American Museum of Natural History

American Museum of Natural History: Mid Ocean Ridge O Logy Card

For Students 9th - 10th
Flip over this interactive OLogy card to find fast facts, questions and answers, and similar bite-size pieces of information about the mid-ocean ridge.
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Graphic
US Geological Survey

Usgs: Mid Oceanic Ridge

For Students 6th - 8th
This site from USGS provides a map of the mid-oceanic ridge in the sea floor of oceans.