Fold Mountains formed when two Plates Collide Fold

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Fold Mountains formed when two Plates Collide.

Fold Mountains formed when two Plates Collide.

Fold Mountains • Fold mountains are mountains that are made when two of the

Fold Mountains • Fold mountains are mountains that are made when two of the earth’s plates collide. • When two plates collide the pressure compresses the rocks, forcing them to buckle and fold. Think of what happens to the bonnet of a car during a crash.

Fold Mountains

Fold Mountains

Fold Mountains

Fold Mountains

Evidence of Folding • Scientists have found fossils of dead sea creatures thousands of

Evidence of Folding • Scientists have found fossils of dead sea creatures thousands of metres up in the Andes in South America. • These creatures lived in the sea, and their remains sank to the ocean floor when they died. • Their remains were trapped in newly forming rocks which are later pushed up from under the sea when plates collide to make fold mountains.

Ridge and Valley Landscape • When the two plates collide the crust buckles and

Ridge and Valley Landscape • When the two plates collide the crust buckles and folds. This creates a pattern of ridges and valleys. • The downward part (the valley) is called a syncline. • The upward part (the ridge) is called an anticline.

Fold Mountains 1. Alpine fold Mountains – youngest, formed 30 -35 million years ago.

Fold Mountains 1. Alpine fold Mountains – youngest, formed 30 -35 million years ago. E. g. Rockies (America), Alps (France), Himalayas (Asia). 2. Armorican fold Mountains – formed 250 million years ago. E. g. Magillicuddy Reeks (Kerry). ‘Munster fold Mountains’. 3. Caledonian fold Mountains – oldest, formed 400 million years ago. E. g. Wicklow Mountains.

Ireland’s Munster Mountains • When the African plate collided with the Eurasian plate 250

Ireland’s Munster Mountains • When the African plate collided with the Eurasian plate 250 million years ago, there was a ripple effect. • The force of the impact reached southern Ireland resulted in the formation of mountains such as Ireland’s tallest mountains, The Macgillycuddy Reeks and the Comeragh Mountains.