continental crust
Earth's granite layer
Continental crust is the portion of Earth's outer rocky layer that forms the continents and continental shelves.
It's thicker but less dense than oceanic crust, composed mainly of granite and similar rocks.
Continental crust floats higher on the mantle beneath, which is why continents rise above sea level while ocean floors sink below it.
- cratonStable ancient continental core
- lithosphereCrust plus upper mantle
- graniteIgneous rock, quartz-rich
- isostasyGravitational balance of landmasses
- shieldHandheld defensive armor
subduction zones · metamorphic rocks · orogeny · mountain building · deep time · sediment · feldspar · platform · mountains · uplift · landmass · geologist · silica · ancient · old as dirt · erosion · magma · seismic
continental crustinner core
Centermost solid sphere
outer core · mantle · core · asthenosphere
crust, continent, crusts, crusted, continents, continental, crustacean, tectonics, crusting