Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
waterlogging
Directory
References

waterlogging

Earth science

Learn about this topic in these articles:

grasslands

  • Buffalo Gap National Grassland
    In grassland: Origin

    …cause is seasonal flooding or waterlogging, which is responsible for the creation and maintenance of large grasslands in parts of the highly seasonal subtropics and in smaller areas of other regions. One of the best examples of a seasonally flooded subtropical grassland is the Pantanal in the Mato Grosso region…

    Read More

temperate deciduous forests

  • temperate forest distribution
    In temperate forest: Environment

    Waterlogging of soils in temperate deciduous woodlands commonly occurs in regions with higher rainfall and humidity in late winter and spring, such as the British Isles. This occurs not only because in winter rainfall is higher and evaporation lower but also because the trees, barren…

    Read More
Britannica Chatbot logo

Britannica Chatbot

Chatbot answers are created from Britannica articles using AI. This is a beta feature. AI answers may contain errors. Please verify important information using Britannica articles. About Britannica AI.
lithosphere
Table of Contents
Introduction References & Edit History Related Topics
Images & Videos
lithosphere crustal generation and destruction cross section of a tectonic plate island arc tectonic units of Earth's continents Figure 4: Principal plates that make up the Earth's lithosphere. Very small plates (“microplates”) have been omitted. Earth's lithosphere and upper mantle Earth's environmental spheres subducting tectonic plate
How and where does magma form on Earth?
lithosphere
lithosphere The lithosphere is the rigid, rocky outer layer of Earth, made up of the crust and the solid outermost layer of the upper mantle that extends a depth of about 60 miles (100 km).

lithosphere

geology
Written and fact-checked by
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Last Updated: • Article History
Key People:
Marcia McNutt
Related Topics:
plate tectonics
mineral
soil
rock
dust

lithosphere, rigid, rocky outer layer of Earth, consisting of the crust and the solid outermost layer of the upper mantle. It extends to a depth of about 60 miles (100 km). It is broken into about a dozen separate, rigid blocks, or plates (see plate tectonics).

crustal generation and destruction
crustal generation and destructionThree-dimensional diagram showing crustal generation and destruction according to the theory of plate tectonics; included are the three kinds of plate boundaries—divergent, convergent (or collision), and strike-slip (or transform).

A series of forces that include slab pull (the sinking of dense blocks into the underlying mantle), slow convection currents deep within the mantle (which are generated by radioactive heating of the interior) and ridge pushing (generated by the upwelling of mantle at divergent boundaries [such as oceanic ridges]) are believed to cause the lateral movements of the tectonic plates (and the continents that rest on top of them) at a rate of several inches per year.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia BritannicaThis article was most recently revised and updated by John P. Rafferty.
Britannica Chatbot logo

Britannica Chatbot

Chatbot answers are created from Britannica articles using AI. This is a beta feature. AI answers may contain errors. Please verify important information using Britannica articles. About Britannica AI.