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Question

What is the solid portion of the Earth's surface called?


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Solution

Layers of the earth :

  1. There are four layers of earth, which are the inner core, outer core, mantel, and crust.
  2. The inner core is the solid, hottest, and center layer of the earth. It is comprised of nickel and iron.
  3. The outer core is a fluid layer composed of iron and nickel. The pressure and temperature of the inner core are very high that the metals are squeezed together and not able to move like a liquid.
  4. Mantel is the widest section of the Earth. It consists of quite hot and dense rock.
  5. The crust is the outer layer where we live. It’s a solid rock layer that divides into continental crust and oceanic crust.
  6. The lithosphere is the outermost solid portion of the earth. It is made up of the crust and the top part of the upper mantle.

Definition of the lithosphere :

  1. The lithosphere is the outermost rigid part of earth composed of the crust and the portion of the upper mantle.
  2. The lithosphere is made of basaltic rocks on the bottom, metamorphic and granitic rocks in the middle, and sedimentary rocks on top.
  3. It is the coolest and most rigid part of the Earth.
  4. The lithosphere is subdivided horizontally into the following 2 types:

(1) Oceanic lithosphere: It is associated with oceanic crust and ocean basins.

(2) Continental lithosphere: It is associated with continental crust and underlies the continents and continental shelf.

An illustrative diagram of the earth's layer and lithosphere :


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GEOGRAPHY
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