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Question:

mia23
mia23
Student
College - Junior

 

Calculate the rate of the Pacific Plate's motion in cm per year for the island sequence Kauai to Oahu. Can you show me the steps.

Note that one kilometer is the same as 100,000 cm.

Island Sequences

Separation Distance

Average Difference

a. Kauai to Oahu

181 km

2,100,000 years

 

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Posted by mia23 on Tuesday April 28, 2009 at 3:04 PM and tagged with geology, science.

Answers:


  1. enotechris Teacher
    Vocational

    I assume that the data in your assumes it would take 2.1 x 10^6 years for the Pacific Plate to move the 181 km distance from Kauai to Oahu.  If so, then:

    1 km = 100,000 cm = 10^5 cm

    181 km = 18,100,000 cm = 1.81 x 10^7 cm

    1.81 x 10^7 cm / 2.1 x 10^6 years = .8619 x 10^1

    which rounds up to 8.62 cm / year.

     

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    Posted by enotechris on Thursday April 30, 2009 at 7:58 AM