Abstract
Beneath the old continental nuclei are thick root zones which translate coherently during plate motions. These zones are apparently stabilised against convective disruption by the depletion of the continental upper mantle in a basalt-like component. Construction of this delicately balanced tectosphere is accomplished by the dynamic and magmatic processes of the Wilson cycle.
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Jordan, T. Composition and development of the continental tectosphere. Nature 274, 544–548 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1038/274544a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/274544a0
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