GLGY 201 Study Guide - Final Guide: Continental Crust, Igneous Rock, Oceanic Basin
5 Apr 2015
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Mantle: solid rock 2,885 km thick, making up 82% of the earth"s volume. Made up of ultramafic rock: convection below 100 km mixes mantle, causing motion of tectonic plates, ductile, flowing only cm per year. Iron rich and very dense, with a radius of 1,220 km in solid inner core and 2,255 km in liquid outer core. The lithosphere contains the crust and upper mantle, and the asthenosphere consists of everything from lower mantle inwards. The lithosphere behaves rigidly and is non-flowing, while the asthenosphere is liquid. The lithosphere is the material which makes up tectonic plates, and the asthenosphere is the medium upon which they sit. Physical properties are a result of specific chemical composition and structure. Specific gravity: represents the density of minerals in comparison to each other. Heft", and described as high, medium, or low. Cleavage: tendency to break along planes of weaker atomic bonds, producing flat, shiny surfaces.
