A sketch outlining the link between the viscous convection within the Earth’s mantle and tectonic surface plate motions, deforming Earth’s surface across wide areas. Shown are the relative positions and motion of some of Earth’s continental (brown) and oceanic plates (blue) captured by the hypothetical cross-section through the middle of the planet. The dynamic link between surface and mantle motion is highlighted by arrows representing first-order material flow direction. This global-scale mantle flow is believed to also affect the shape, position and mobility of large low shear-velocity provinces (LLSVPs; red) at the base of the mantle (yellow) just above the Earth’s core (orange).
- Creator: Clint P. Conrad
- This version: 01.09.2021
- License: Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0)
- Specific citation: This graphic by Clint Conrad based on Conrad et al. (2013) is available via the open-access s-Ink repository.
- Related reference: Conrad, C., Steinberger, B. & Torsvik, T. Stability of active mantle upwelling revealed by net characteristics of plate tectonics. Nature 498, 479–482 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature12203
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