Earth layer
Continental crust
The thicker, less dense crust that makes up the continents. Its buoyancy is why continental lithosphere resists being drawn down at convergent boundaries, and why continental collision builds mountains instead of trenches.
Classification
- division basis
- compositional
How this record is known
- 2
- Settled consensus
- Cited as the accepted position of the discipline.
2 of 2 claims on this page cite at least one registered source. Counts describe how each statement is known, not how likely it is to be true.
What Lithoen records
Each claim states how it is known and cites its evidence.
EstablishedContinental crust resists subduction because of its low density.
When two continents meet head-on neither is subducted, because continental rocks are relatively light and, like two colliding icebergs, resist downward motion.
- precision note: The source describes resistance to downward motion in continental collision. It does not state that continental crust can never be carried to depth, and Lithoen makes no such absolute claim.
Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence · one source
Evidence: Kious 1996 · Primary authority
Established30 km
Continental crust is much more variable than oceanic crust but averages about 30 kilometres, reaching as much as 100 kilometres beneath large mountain ranges.
- precision note: An average; the base of the crust can lie as deep as 100 km under large ranges such as the Alps or the Sierra Nevada.
Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence · one source
Evidence: Kious 1996 · Primary authority
Record last updated 2026-09-06. Corrections follow the published corrections policy; superseded claims are retained, never silently edited.