Crust (geology)

High school (ages 12+)
Geography

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/crust-geology

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the age of oldest continental crust?Parts of the continental crust are over 4 billion years old
2. What is the primary driver of plate tectonics?Mantle convection cells transferring heat from the Earth's core
3. What is Earth's crust?The Earth's crust is the thin, rocky outer shell that covers the planet, where mountains, oceans, and all land are found.
4. Why is oceanic crust thinner than continental crust?Oceanic crust is thinner because it is made of dense mafic rocks and is younger, while continental crust is thicker and made of lighter felsic rocks.

Lithosphere: The rigid outer layer of the Earth, comprising the crust and upper mantle.
Asthenosphere: The highly viscous, mechanically weak and ductile region of the upper mantle beneath the lithosphere.
Subduction: The process where one tectonic plate moves under another and sinks into the mantle.