Tectonic plate movement shapes crustal features on the surface of the Earth. Which statement best describes this?

• A. They influence only ocean basins
• B. They cause meteor impacts
• C. They shape crustal features on the surface of the Earth
• D. They do not affect surface topography

Answer: (B)

Movement of Earth’s tectonic plates reshapes the crust by pushing, pulling, and sliding at plate boundaries. This activity builds mountains where plates collide, creates deep ocean trenches where one plate sinks beneath another, and forms mid‑ocean ridges as new crust rises. It also sculpts continental rifts and other surface features, showing how plate motion directly shapes what we see on the Earth’s surface. Meteor impacts come from space and aren’t caused by plate movement, and plate dynamics affect both continents and ocean basins, not just one aspect of surface topography. So the statement that best describes the effect is that tectonic plate movement shapes crustal features on the surface of the Earth.