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ECORCE TERRESTRE [1 record]

Record 1 2011-05-09

English

Subject field(s)
  • Geology
DEF

The outermost solid layer of the Earth, mostly consisting of crystalline rock and extending no more than a few miles from the surface to the Mohorovicic discontinuity.

CONT

Earth's outermost, rigid, rocky layer is called the crust. It is composed of low-density, easily melted rocks; the continental crust is predominantly granitic rock, while composition of the oceanic crust corresponds mainly to that of basalt and gabbro. Analyses of seismic waves, generated by earthquakes within Earth's interior, show that the crust extends about 50 km (30 miles) beneath the continents but only 5-10 km (3-6) miles beneath the ocean floors.

CONT

In composition, the Earth is made of three nested spheres. At the center of the Earth, a body of intensely hot iron and nickel forms the core. A less dense and much larger middle sphere is made of materials rich in iron, magnesium and calcium comprises the mantle. The outermost layer is a thin veneer of lighter rocks called the crust.

French

Domaine(s)
  • Géologie
DEF

Couche de roches située près de la surface de la Terre.

CONT

Au cours des temps géologiques, l'écorce se différencia en une croûte continentale formée principalement de roches granitiques [...] et en une croûte océanique formée de roches basaltiques [...] La limite entre le manteau et l'écorce est appelé discontinuité de Mohorovicic ou Moho.

CONT

La partie la plus superficielle de la partie solide [de la Terre] c'est la croûte. Sous les océans, elle ne dépasse pas sept kilomètres d'épaisseur, alors que sous les continents, elle varie entre 20 et 70 kilomètres.

Spanish

Campo(s) temático(s)
  • Geología
DEF

Parte superior de la envolvente externa del globo terráqueo, que yace sobre el manto a lo largo de la discontinuidad de Mohorovicic.

OBS

Constituye el 1 por 1 000 del volumen de la Tierra, con un grosor bastante variable.

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