Geological process

Seafloor spreading

The generation of new oceanic crust at mid-ocean ridges and its transport away from the ridge crest, progressively widening the ocean basin between the separating plates.

How this record is known

1
Settled consensus: Cited as the accepted position of the discipline.

1 of 1 claims on this page cite at least one registered source. Counts describe how each statement is known, not how likely it is to be true.

What Lithoen records

Each claim states how it is known and cites its evidence.

EstablishedNew oceanic crust forms at the ridge and moves away on both sides.

Divergent boundaries occur along spreading centres where plates move apart and new crust is created by magma pushing up from the mantle, which then carries newly formed oceanic crust away from the ridge crest.

Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence one source

Evidence: Kious 1996 Primary authority

In the knowledge graph

Seafloor spreading driven by Continental rifting
Seafloor spreading drives Partial melting
Seafloor spreading known through Marine magnetic surveying
Seafloor spreading drives Plate tectonics
Seafloor spreading forms Oceanic crust
Seafloor spreading operates in Global mid-ocean ridge system
Seafloor spreading is a documented context for Volcanogenic massive sulfide system

Record last updated 2026-09-06. Corrections follow the published corrections policy; superseded claims are retained, never silently edited.