section_path: Orders of magnitude/Continents
section_name: Continents
paragraph_text: Continents
  
  The Theory of Plate tectonics tells us that the continents are drifting on convection currents within the mantle, causing them to move across the surface of the planet at the slow speed of approximately 2.54 centimetres (1 in) per year. However, the velocities of plates range widely. The fastest-moving plates are the oceanic plates, with the Cocos Plate advancing at a rate of 75 millimetres (3.0 in) per year and the Pacific Plate moving 52–69 millimetres (2.0–2.7 in) per year. At the other extreme, the slowest-moving plate is the Eurasian Plate, progressing at a typical rate of about 21 millimetres (0.83 in) per year.