These two things were the magnetic striping on the ocean floor and the age of seafloor rocks.
Magnetic strips ocean floor.
Among the new findings was the discovery of zebra stripe like magnetic patterns for the rocks of the ocean floor.
Magnetic striping of the sea floor after mid ocean ridges and trenches were discovered more evidence was discovered that helped to support the theory that the continents had moved around.
Several types of evidence supported hess s theory of sea floor spreading.
Evidence for sea floor spreading.
Plate tectonic processes can affect climate.
The concept of seafloor spreading was supported by magnetic polarity stripes on the ocean floor.
Such magnetic patterns led to recognition of the occurrence of sea floor spreading and they remain some of the strongest evidence for the theory of plate tectonics.
Magnetic stripes and isotopic clocks oceanographic exploration in the 1950s led to a much better understanding of the ocean floor.
New oceanic lithosphere is generated at mid ocean ridges.
The hawaiian islands are a volcanic arc atop an oceanic subduction zone.
These patterns were unlike any seen for continental rocks.
The strips on the atlantic ocean floor in particular all seemed parallel to the mid atlantic ridge that is a volcanic ridge running roughly north to south with some zigs and zags halfway between europe africa and america.
This finding though unexpected.
This evidence led scientists to look again at wegener s hypothesis of continental drift.
The figure below includes two images of the ocean floor.
Evidence from molten material.
In the ocean floor the magnetization was orderly arranged in long strips.
Plate tectonics and reversals of the earth s magnetic field are responsible for the magnetic stripes found on the ocean floor.
Magnetic striping magnetic minerals are found in rocks.
Magnetic evidence for seafloor spreading explains how magnetic polarity frozen into seafloor basalts reveals evidence for the creation of new seafloor at mid ocean ridges.
When magma flows out of a mid ocean ridge small magnetic minerals in the magma align themselves to point in the direction of the earth s current magnetic north.
