Tectonic and mantle convection regimes
Conceptual illustration of different styles (regimes) of tectonics and mantle convection, which are relevant for rocky planets.
Conceptual illustration of different styles (regimes) of tectonics and mantle convection, which are relevant for rocky planets.
Conceptual model sketches for proposed compositional structures of Earth's mantle, including "Marble cake", "Thermo-chemical piles", and "Mid-mantle blobs" theories.
Simulation of infinite Prandtl number, thermal convection (e.g., mantle convection).
Simulation of infinite Prandtl number, thermal convection (e.g., mantle convection).
Sketches outlining the solid-Earth induced change of sea level over different time periods, covering elastic, viscous, and mantle convection time scales.
A sketch outlining the link between the viscous convection within the Earth’s mantle and tectonic surface plate motions.
Simplified model of the Earth’s interior and its global dynamics featuring a solid inner and a fluid outer core, a viscous partially molten but not fluid mantle, and characteristic surface topography.
Comparison of suggested mantle convection in the Earth (mobile-lid mode) and Venus (inefficient short slab mode).
The three deformation mechanisms viscous, elastic, and brittle (a.k.a. plastic).