lithosphere

[ lith-uh-sfeer ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

, Geology.

lithosphere

/ ˈlɪθəˌsfɪə /

the rigid outer layer of the earth, having an average thickness of about 75 km and comprising the earth's crust and the solid part of the mantle above the asthenosphere

lithosphere

/ lĭth′ə-sfîr′ /

The outer part of the Earth, consisting of the crust and upper mantle. It is about 55 km (34 mi) thick beneath the oceans and up to about 200 km (124 mi) thick beneath the continents. The high velocity with which seismic waves propagate through the lithosphere suggests that it is completely solid.
Compare asthenosphere

lithosphere

The outer layer of the Earth , comprising the crust and the upper part of the mantle . The lithosphere is about sixty miles thick.

First recorded in 1885–90; litho- + -sphere

Above the metallic core of the planet, the lithosphere consists exclusively of fluorides of the metals.

By their action upon the lithosphere they have produced a third envelope,—the mantle of rock waste.

The dark, cold abysses of the ocean are far less affected by change than any other portion of the surface of the lithosphere.

All the tectonic movements of the solid nucleus produce changes in the mobile lithosphere.

These igneous rocks were consolidated either upon the surface of the lithosphere or in its interior.

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