What are the differences between oceanic crust and continental crust?

What are the differences between oceanic crust and continental crust?

The crust is the outer layer of the Earth. It is the solid rock layer upon which we live. 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.

What are the 2 main differences between these two types of crust?

Earth’s Crust These two different types of crust are made up of different types of rock. The thin oceanic crust is composed of primarily of basalt, and the thicker continental crust is composed primarily of granite.

What are two differences between oceanic crust and continental crust quizlet?

The oceanic crust is thinner and denser, and is similar in composition to basalt (Si, O, Ca, Mg, and Fe). The continental crust is thicker and less dense, and is similar to granite in composition (Si, O, Al, K, and Na).

What are two differences between continental and oceanic plates?

Basalt is denser and heavier than the granite that makes up continental plates. Oceanic plates are much thinner than the continental plates. The rocks and geological layers are much older on continental plates than in the oceanic plates. The Continental plates are much less dense than the Oceanic plates.

What are 3 differences between oceanic crust and continental crust?

Continental crust is low in density whereas oceanic crust has a higher density. Continental crust is thicker, on the contrary, the oceanic crust is thinner. Continental crust floats on magma freely but oceanic crust floats on magma scarcely. Continental crust cannot recycle whereas oceanic crust can recycle it.

What are the characteristics of the continental crust?

Continental crust is broadly granitic in composition and, with a density of about 2.7 grams per cubic cm, is somewhat lighter than oceanic crust, which is basaltic (i.e., richer in iron and magnesium than granite) in composition and has a density of about 2.9 to 3 grams per cubic cm.

What are the 2 types of crust?

Earth’s crust is divided into two types: oceanic crust and continental crust. The transition zone between these two types of crust is sometimes called the Conrad discontinuity. Silicates (mostly compounds made of silicon and oxygen) are the most abundant rocks and minerals in both oceanic and continental crust.

What are 3 differences between oceanic and continental crust?

What are the two types of crust?

What plate is thicker continental or oceanic?

Continental crust is also less dense than oceanic crust, though it is considerably thicker; mostly 35 to 40 km versus the average oceanic thickness of around 7-10 km.

Which type of crust is usually the oldest?

Continental crust is almost always much older than oceanic crust. Because continental crust is rarely destroyed and recycled in the process of subduction, some sections of continental crust are nearly as old as the Earth itself.

What are the 3 kinds of crust?

Planetary geologists divide crust into three categories based on how and when it formed.

• Primary crust / primordial crust.
• Secondary crust.
• Tertiary crust.

What is the difference between oceanic and continental crust?

The oceanic crust is the component of the earth’s crust that makes up the ocean basins whereas the continental crust makes up the earth’s surface. Both continental and oceanic crust make the uppermost part of the earth.

What are facts about oceanic crust?

Oceanic crust is the part of Earth’s lithosphere that is under the ocean basins. Oceanic crust is primarily composed of mafic rocks, or sima . It is thinner than continental crust, or sial, generally less than 10 kilometers thick, however it is more dense, having a mean density of about 3.3 g / cm3 .

What are facts about continental crust?

The continental crust is the layer of granitic, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks which form the continents and the areas of shallow seabed close to their shores, known as continental shelves. It consists mostly of sialic rock. It is less dense than the material of the Earth’s mantle, which consists of mafic rock.

What is the density of the continental crust?

The average density of continental crust is about 2.83 g/cm 3, less dense than the ultramafic material that makes up the mantle, which has a density of around 3.3 g/cm 3. Continental crust is also less dense than oceanic crust, whose density is about 2.9 g/cm 3.