As many as 20 tectonic plates cover the planet.

地表覆盖有至少20个地壳板块。

The Earth's outermost surface is made up of large tectonic plates.

地球最外层由大型的地壳板块构成。

Those shifting tectonic plates a billion and a half years ago?

那些 15 亿年前移动的地壳板块？

This an animated computer model that shows the movement of tectonic plates.

这是一个显示板块构造运动的计算机动画模型。

Most volcanoes whether on land or underwater are located where tectonic plates meet.

无论是在陆地上还是在水下，大多数火山都位于地壳板块交汇的地方。

Here are these tectonic plates I was talking about. Essentially these are constantly shifting.

这就是我刚说的构造板块。基本上，它们在不断运动。

After all, earthquakes on our planet occur due to the movement of tectonic plates.

毕竟，地球上的地震是由板块运动引起的。

The fact is tectonic plates move all the time.

事实是，构造板块一直都在不停地移动。

But when two tectonic plates meet they cause a different kind of crack.

但当两个地壳板块相遇时，则会引起不同类型的裂纹。

The Earth's tectonic plates are still moving.

地球构造板块也一直都在不停地移动。

The tiny cracks in the ground in Florida are caused by stresses within a single tectonic plate.

在佛罗里达州，地面的这些微小裂缝是由单个板块内的张力所造成的。

These result when two huge pieces of the Earth's surface, called tectonic plates, slide past each other.

当地球表面的两块巨大的构造板块相互滑动时，就会发生走滑型地震。

It started life when stresses and strains in the tectonic plate caused cracks to open in the crust.

它的产生是由于地壳板块内的巨大张力和压力导致了裂缝。

Tectonic plates are usually in contact with water for thousands of years and absorb some of it.

构造板块通常与水接触上千年并吸收其一小部分。

And deep below the earth's surface tectonic plates are always moving most volcanic activity occurs where these plates collide.

在地球表面深处，构造板块一直在移动，大多数火山活动发生在这些板块碰撞的地方。

It was near the point of collision between three tectonic plates, the Cocos, the Caribbean and the North American.

接近3个地壳板块--库克群岛、加勒比地区、北美地区--的交界处。

San Francisco and Los Angeles sit on two separate tectonic plates, either side of the San Andreas Fault.

旧金山和洛杉矶坐落在两个独立的板块上，分别位于圣安地列斯断层的两侧。

This is because beneath the surface, New Zealand exists precisely along the intersection of the Pacific and Australian tectonic plates.

这是因为在地表之下，新西兰正好位于太平洋和澳大利亚构造板块的交汇处。

You might be imagining our tectonic plates floating on the molten mantle the way logs float on a river.

你可能会想象我们的构造板块漂浮在熔融的地幔上，就像原木漂浮在河流上一样。

This is because tectonic plates on our planet repeatedly recycle the surface, burying evidence from before the time life formed.

这是因为地球上的构造板块在地球表面反复循环，掩埋了生命形成之前的证据。