what is the difference in composition between oceanic and continental crust?
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The continental crust is made mostly of rocks with a composition similar to granite (a light-colored rock you would expect to find in the Sierra Nevada), whereas the oceanic crust is made mostly of rocks with a composition of basalt (a dark- colored rock, like the rocks that make up the Hawaiian volcanoes).
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Each of these layers can be further divided into two parts: the inner and outer core, the upper and lower mantle and the continental and oceanic crust. Both the inner and outer core are made up of mostly iron and a little bit of nickel. The inner core is solid, while the outer core is liquid.
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Continental crust consists mainly of less dense rocks such as granite. Oceanic crust consists of mainly denser rocks such as basalt.
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Earth can be divided into three main layers: the core, the mantle and the crust. Each of these layers can be further divided into two parts: the inner and outer core, the upper and lower mantle and the continental and oceanic crust. ... The inner core is solid, while the outer core is liquid.
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Earth's crust is 5 to 70 km thick. Continental crust makes up the land on Earth, it is thicker (35 - 70 km), less dense and mostly made up of the rock granite.
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Continental crust is typically 30-50 km thick, whilst oceanic crust is only 5-10 km thick. Oceanic crust is denser, can be subducted and is constantly being destroyed and replaced at plate boundaries.
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Both oceanic crust and continental crust are less dense than the mantle, but oceanic crust is denser than continental crust. ... Because continental crust is less dense than oceanic crust it floats higher on the mantle, just like a piece of Styrofoam floats higher on water than a piece of wood does.
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Continental drift is a very similar process to seafloor spreading. Continental drift is the gradual movement of continental plates over the Earth's surface over time. ... Seafloor spreading is the formation of new areas of oceanic crust due to the upwelling of magma as oceanic aparts pull apart.
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Oceanic crust is about 6 km (4 miles) thick. It is composed of several layers, not including the overlying sediment. ... Oceanic crust differs from continental crust in several ways: it is thinner, denser, younger, and of different chemical composition.
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Basalt is denser and heavier than the granite that makes up continental plates. Oceanic plates are much thinner than the continental plates. ... Continental plates are much thicker that Oceanic plates. At the convergent boundaries the continental plates are pushed upward and gain thickness.
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The layers of different chemical composition outward from the centre of the Earth are as follows: core, mantle, and crust. At the centre is the densest of the three layers, the core. It is mostly metallic iron with small amounts of nickel and other elements. The outer boundary of core is at a depth of 2,900 kilometres.
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Oceanic lithosphere is typically about 50-100 km thick (but beneath the mid-ocean ridges is no thicker than the crust). The continental lithosphere is thicker (about 150 km). It consists of about 50 km of crust and 100 km or more of the uppermost mantle.
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When continental and oceanic plates collide, the thinner and more dense oceanic plate is overridden by the thicker and less dense continental plate. The oceanic plate is forced down into the mantle in a process known as "subduction." As the oceanic plate descends, it is forced into higher temperature environments.
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Earth's Crust There are two different types of crust: thin oceanic crust that underlies the ocean basins, and thicker continental crust that underlies the continents. These two different types of crust are made up of different types of rock.
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Most earthquakes occur along the edge of the oceanic and continental plates. The earth's crust (the outer layer of the planet) is made up of several pieces, called plates. The plates under the oceans are called oceanic plates and the rest are continental plates.
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The upper mantle adjoins the crust to form the lithosphere, whereas the lower mantle never comes in contact with the crust. ... The lower mantle temperature, in contrast, reaches over 7,230 degrees Fahrenheit or 4,000 degrees Celsius. Pressure is one great difference between the upper and lower mantle.
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Core, mantle, and crust are divisions based on composition. The crust makes up less than 1 percent of Earth by mass, consisting of oceanic crust and continental crust is often more felsic rock. The mantle is hot and represents about 68 percent of Earth's mass. Finally, the core is mostly iron metal.