Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
A craton (/ ˈ k r eɪ t ɒ n / KRAYT-on, / ˈ k r æ t ɒ n / KRAT-on, or / ˈ k r eɪ t ən / KRAY-tən; [1] [2] [3] from Ancient Greek: κράτος kratos "strength") is an old and stable part of the continental lithosphere, which consists of Earth's two topmost layers, the crust and the uppermost mantle.
A craton is an ancient part of the Earth's continental crust which has been more or less stable since Precambrian times. Cratons whose ancient rocks are widely exposed at the surface, often with relatively subdued relief, are known as shields.
Being relatively stable regions, the relief of shields is rather old, with elements such as peneplains being shaped in Precambrian times. The oldest peneplain identifiable in a shield is called a "primary peneplain"; [ 5 ] in the case of the Fennoscandian Shield , this is the Sub-Cambrian peneplain .
A craton is a large part of the Earth's crust that has been stable and subjected to very little geological changes over a long time. [2] The size of Superior Craton is about 1,572,000 km 2. [3] The craton underwent a series of events from 4.3 to 2.57 Ga. These events included the growth, drifting and deformation of both oceanic and continental ...
The stable core of the continent is the North American Craton. Much of it was also the core of an earlier continent, Laurentia. [3] The part of the craton where the basement rock is exposed is called the Canadian Shield. Surrounding this is a stable platform where the basement is covered by sediment; and surrounding that are a series of ...
Hearne Craton – Craton in northern Canada (Canada) Laurentian Craton, also known as North American Craton – Craton forming the geological core of North America (Canada and United States) Insular plate – Ancient oceanic plate; Intermontane plate – Ancient oceanic tectonic plate on the west coast of North America about 195 million years ago
Idealized cross-section of Earth's lithosphere, including the relationship between cratons, shields and platforms (Abbreviations: cb=cratonic basin, LIP=large igneous province, MOR=mid-ocean ridge)
The North China Craton is a continental crustal block with one of Earth's most complete and complex records of igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic processes. [1] It is located in northeast China, Inner Mongolia, the Yellow Sea, and North Korea. [1] The term craton designates this as a piece of continent that is stable, buoyant and rigid.