lithosphere


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lith·o·sphere

 (lĭth′ə-sfîr′)
n.
The outer part of the earth, consisting of the crust and upper mantle, about 100 kilometers (62 miles) thick.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

lithosphere

(ˈlɪθəˌsfɪə)
n
(Geological Science) the rigid outer layer of the earth, having an average thickness of about 75 km and comprising the earth's crust and the solid part of the mantle above the asthenosphere
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

lith•o•sphere

(ˈlɪθ əˌsfɪər)

n.
the crust and upper mantle of the earth.
[1885–90]
lith`o•spher′ic (-ˈsfɛr ɪk) adj.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

lith·o·sphere

(lĭth′ə-sfîr′)
The outer part of the Earth, consisting of the crust and upper mantle. It is approximately 62 miles (100 kilometers) thick. Compare asthenosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere.
The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

lithosphere

the solid part of the earth, as contrasted with the atmosphere and hydrosphere.
See also: Earth
-Ologies & -Isms. Copyright 2008 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

lithosphere

The term used to describe the Earth’s crust coupled with the rigid upper mantle.
Dictionary of Unfamiliar Words by Diagram Group Copyright © 2008 by Diagram Visual Information Limited
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.lithosphere - the solid part of the earth consisting of the crust and outer mantlelithosphere - the solid part of the earth consisting of the crust and outer mantle
layer - a relatively thin sheetlike expanse or region lying over or under another
crust, Earth's crust - the outer layer of the Earth
earth, globe, world - the 3rd planet from the sun; the planet we live on; "the Earth moves around the sun"; "he sailed around the world"
mantle - the layer of the earth between the crust and the core
Earth's surface, surface - the outermost level of the land or sea; "earthquakes originate far below the surface"; "three quarters of the Earth's surface is covered by water"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
References in periodicals archive ?
Subsurface loading and estimates of the flexural rigidities of continental lithosphere, Journal of Geophysical Research, 90, No.
The lithosphere; geochemistry, geology and geophysics.
Dehydration of subducted oceanic lithosphere releases fluid into the overlying mantle wedge and initiates a chain of events culminating in the generation of magma that rises to form volcanic arcs.
Acta geodynamica et geomaterialia are devoted to geodynamics of the upper part of Earth's crust and relations between natural factors and human activity (local natural and induced seismic activities, an earthquake hazard, natural slope stability, physical properties of rocks), geophysical and geological investigations of lithosphere, especially tectonics, engineering and geomechanical aspects.
The lithosphere is a somewhat flexible layer comprising Earth's crust and the upper part of the mantle.
This is a key question in the planet's evolution as biological activity plays a major role in its hydrosphere, atmosphere and lithosphere. In what is being described as an "extraordinary find," a team of Australian researchers has uncovered ancient fossils in a remote area of Greenland that could point to the earliest existence of life on Earth.
12 ( ANI ): The Greenland ice sheet is melting from below, caused by a high heat flow from the mantle into the lithosphere.
Relic Neo-Tethyan oceanic lithosphere has been preserved in the IYZSZ as the discontinuous Ladakh and Yarlung Zangbo Ophiolites (YZO).
The main emphasis is on the atmosphere as a multiphase system, but the interfacial chemistry of atmospheric relationships with the hydrosphere, the lithosphere, and the biosphere are also discussed.
The topics include the lithosphere as microbial habitat, molecular and non-molecular methods, geomicrobially important interactions with nitrogen, the biogenesis and biodegradation of sulfide minerals at Earth's surface, and fossil fuels.
We also know that these causes operate on different time scales and that atmospheric climate involves complex feedback effects with the hydrosphere, the biosphere and the lithosphere.