GEOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -The Earth is divided into several layers. The surface layer we live on is called the crust, which sits on top of a lower layer called the mantle. Together, the crust and top part of the mantle make up the Earth’s tectonic plates, which fit together like puzzle pieces.

Detailed explanation-2: -massive slab of solid rock made up of Earth’s lithosphere (crust and upper mantle). Also called lithospheric plate.

Detailed explanation-3: -The crust and the upper part of the mantle is called the lithosphere. It is rather like a jigsaw puzzle and is made up of large pieces called tectonic plates.

Detailed explanation-4: -The earth’s crust is broken into separate pieces called tectonic plates (Fig. 7.14). Recall that the crust is the solid, rocky, outer shell of the planet. It is composed of two distinctly different types of material: the less-dense continental crust and the more-dense oceanic crust.