Which pairing correctly matches a plate boundary type with a typical feature it creates?

Which pairing correctly matches a plate boundary type with a typical feature it creates?

• A. Divergent boundaries create trenches; convergent create mid-ocean ridges
• B. Divergent boundaries create mid-ocean ridges; convergent boundaries create mountains or trenches
• C. Transform boundaries create mountain ranges; divergent create fault lines
• D. Convergent boundaries create rift valleys; transform create mid-ocean ridges

Answer: (B)

Understanding how plate boundaries shape Earth’s surface. When two plates move apart at a divergent boundary, mantle magma rises to fill the gap and creates new crust, which shows up most clearly as mid-ocean ridges. If divergence occurs on land, you can get a rift valley, but the common feature used to describe oceanic divergence is the mid-ocean ridge. At a convergent boundary, plates collide. If oceanic crust is involved, one plate sinks beneath the other, forming a deep trench and often volcanic mountains on the overriding plate. If continental plates collide, they crumple to form tall mountain ranges, not trenches. This combination—divergent boundaries producing mid-ocean ridges and convergent boundaries producing mountains or trenches—fits typical surface features best. Transform boundaries mainly produce earthquakes along faults and don’t create ridges or large mountain belts.

Understanding how plate boundaries shape Earth’s surface. When two plates move apart at a divergent boundary, mantle magma rises to fill the gap and creates new crust, which shows up most clearly as mid-ocean ridges. If divergence occurs on land, you can get a rift valley, but the common feature used to describe oceanic divergence is the mid-ocean ridge. At a convergent boundary, plates collide. If oceanic crust is involved, one plate sinks beneath the other, forming a deep trench and often volcanic mountains on the overriding plate. If continental plates collide, they crumple to form tall mountain ranges, not trenches. This combination—divergent boundaries producing mid-ocean ridges and convergent boundaries producing mountains or trenches—fits typical surface features best. Transform boundaries mainly produce earthquakes along faults and don’t create ridges or large mountain belts.