Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Foreword
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- 1 What is the lithosphere?
- 2 Age of the lithosphere
- 3 Seismic structure of the lithosphere
- 4 Thermal regime of the lithosphere from heat flow data
- 5 Thermal state of the lithosphere from non-thermal data
- 6 CBL and lithospheric density from petrologic and geophysical data
- 7 Electrical structure of the lithosphere
- 8 Flexure and rheology
- 9 Evolution of the lithosphere
- 10 Summary of lithospheric properties
- References
- Subject index
- Geographical index
9 - Evolution of the lithosphere
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 25 October 2011
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Foreword
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- 1 What is the lithosphere?
- 2 Age of the lithosphere
- 3 Seismic structure of the lithosphere
- 4 Thermal regime of the lithosphere from heat flow data
- 5 Thermal state of the lithosphere from non-thermal data
- 6 CBL and lithospheric density from petrologic and geophysical data
- 7 Electrical structure of the lithosphere
- 8 Flexure and rheology
- 9 Evolution of the lithosphere
- 10 Summary of lithospheric properties
- References
- Subject index
- Geographical index
Summary
“When a fact appears opposed to a long train of deductions it invariably proves to be capable of bearing some other interpretation.”
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, A Study in Scarlet (1887)In contrast to the previous chapters which discussed lithosphere structure based on different geophysical and geochemical data sets, this chapter focuses on lithospheric processes. It summarizes data on the lithosphere evolution, from its formation at the early stages of planetary differentiation to plate tectonics processes that lead to lithosphere modification and recycling. The primary focus is on the Precambrian evolution of the continental lithosphere: while the modern oceanic lithosphere is young, the Precambrian crust covers more than 85% of the Earth’s geological history in time and occupies more than 70% of the continents in area. Structure and evolution of the Precambrian lithosphere have recently received much attention, and broad discussions and overviews can be found in a number of books (de Wit and Ashwall, 1997; Kemp and Hawkesworth, 2003; Patchett and Samson, 2003; Halliday, 2003; Benn et al., 2006; Brown and Rushmer, 2006; Hamilton, 2007; Hatcher et al., 2007; Condie and Pease, 2008; Santosh and Zhao, 2009).
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The LithosphereAn Interdisciplinary Approach, pp. 607 - 669Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2011