How are plate tectonics and seafloor spreading related?

When considering all the facets of the liquid and solid earth, plate tectonics can appear to be a rather straightforward subject.

The solid earth's crust slides very slowly on top of the viscous, partially molten liquid mantel, or asthenosphere, which is the reason for plate tectonics. The solid earth's crust is broken up into many plates that constantly collide and shift around one another.

Seafloor spreading is just another name for divergent plates. When plates diverge from each other, beneath the ocean, new seafloor is created. When the plates diverge from each other, other plates are also converging, which is what creates mountains and subduction zones. In the grand scheme of earth's history, that's how the planet recycles rock and our atmosphere on a multimillion-year timescale. This is how seafood spreading fits into plate tectonics.

Plate tectonics and seafloor spreading are related because seafloor spreading is a key mechanism driving plate tectonics. Seafloor spreading occurs at mid-ocean ridges, where new oceanic crust is formed as magma rises from the mantle and solidifies. This process pushes older crust away from the ridge, causing the seafloor to spread apart. As the seafloor spreads, it creates space for magma to rise and form new crust, leading to the continuous movement of tectonic plates. Seafloor spreading is one of the driving forces behind plate motion and helps to shape the Earth's surface and geology over time.