Abstract
The underground temperature, the geothermal flow and the rock radiogenic heat provide evidence of the heat transfer processes and of the thermal state of the lithosphere. Changes in surface temperature can cause fluctuations in the temperature of the uppermost crustal layers. The geothermal flow can be envisaged as a combination of the heat generated from the rock radioactive elements, a transient component caused by tectothermal processes, and the heat flowing out from the asthenosphere. By solving the heat conduction equation for a continental or an oceanic plate, the surface temperature and the geothermal flow allow the determination of the temperature-depth distribution in the lithosphere. Finally, an insight into the thermal regime of the deeper interior is given in this chapter.
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Pasquale, V., Verdoya, M., Chiozzi, P. (2014). Thermal State. In: Geothermics. SpringerBriefs in Earth Sciences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02511-7_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02511-7_3
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