lithosphere

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“
The crust and upper mantle form a cold, strong layer known as the lithosphere.

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Definitions (4)

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  1. noun The outer part of the earth, consisting of the crust and upper mantle, approximately 100 km (62 mi.) thick.

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Examples (50)

  • As they drove two abreast through the lithosphere, the members of the team had the illusion of going down a gigantic ramp with sharp drops at regular intervals. —  The Many-Coloured Land -- Julian May
  • Hercules pressed the moon's crust deep into the lithosphere, violent seismic waves set in motion the mountings of the laser throwers, and although they withstood these earthquakes (Titan quakes, rather) the solar column wavered and shook. —  FIASCO - Stanislaw Lem
  • The pressure exerted by the ocean on the ocean floor decreased, and as a result the equilibrium in the lithosphere was disturbed. —  FIASCO - Stanislaw Lem
  • Above the curve of the lithosphere, which was opaque and black, lay—in the same bent band—a whitish mist, thickest along the horizon: the atmosphere, with microscopic floccules that were clouds. —  FIASCO - Stanislaw Lem
  • Through the shock-wave clouds of the boiling ocean (compared with which the mushroom cloud of a thermonuclear explosion was a speck) the solaser could bore into the suboceanic plate, pierce the lithosphere, and penetrate Quinta to a quarter of its radius. —  FIASCO - Stanislaw Lem
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Etymologies (1)

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  1. from Greek λίθος, stone, + σφαῖρα, sphere: see sphere.
 

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/ˈlɪθəsfir/
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