Die Entwicklung der Erdrinde

The key and the well established basis for our present understanding of the evolution of the earth's lithosphere is the continous creation of new oceanic lithosphere in the mid oceanic ridge system. Paleomagnetic evidence and the concept of global plate tectonics permit a quantitative reconstruction of the kinematic history of the lithosphere for the past 200 m.y. This leads to continent configurations very similar to those proposed by A. Wegener. Plate tectonic processes can be traced back until Precambrian times. Before that, due to the generally higher temperature of the earth, the evolution was apparently governed by different processes. Thermal convection and gravitational instabilities are considered as driving forces for the lithosphere.