Wordie: Lithosphere: Comments

I love this word

Sat, 09 Dec 2006 06:25:34 +0000

I never really thought about rock the same way after learning this word. It also reminds me of another fun word I learned recently: lithobraking.

If you want to read a something that uses the word lithosphere a lot, along with many other geological terms, I recommend the Red Mars series by Kim Stanley Robinson.

Not "Crust"

Sat, 09 Dec 2006 05:51:12 +0000

The lithosphere is not to be confused with the crust. The crust is only part of the lithosphere. The lithosphere extends to approximately 100 km in depth and it is the fracturing of the lithosphere into plates that is described by plate tectonics. The lithosphere therefore includes the MOHO - the boundary between the crust and the mantle.