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seafloor spreading summary

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Below is the article summary. For the full article, see seafloor spreading.

seafloor spreading, Theory that oceanic crust forms along submarine mountain zones, known collectively as the oceanic ridge system, and spreads out laterally away from them. This idea, proposed by U.S. geophysicist Harry H. Hess (1906–1969) in 1960, was pivotal in the development of the theory of plate tectonics.