[DOC] [TLE] plate tectonics facts, information, pictures | Encyclopedia.com ... [PAR] Nor is the planet's crust all of one piece; it is composed of numerous plates, 
which are moving .... As an area of study, plate tectonics deals with the large 
features of the ... the term plates to describe the pieces that make up Earth's rigid 
surface. .... Given these facts about the interactions of oceanic and continental 
plates with... [DOC] [TLE] Plate Tectonics - Crystalinks [PAR] These plates move in relation to one another at one of three types of plate 
boundaries: ... The lithosphere is cooler and more rigid, whilst the asthenosphere 
is hotter and .... An example of a continental-oceanic subduction zone is the area 
along the .... The tectonic plates that cover Earth's surface, including both land 
and... [DOC] [TLE] Chapter 1 Plate Tectonics - Volcano World [PAR] The crust is the layer that you live on, and it is the most widely studied and 
understood. ... The crust of the Earth is broken into many pieces called plates. ... 
The crust and the upper layer of the mantle together make up a zone of rigid, 
brittle .... In other words the rocks in these areas of the two continents were 
produced at the... [DOC] [TLE] The Earth's Layers Lesson #1 [PAR] The crust is the layer that you live on, and it is the most widely studied and 
understood ... The crust of the Earth is broken into many pieces called plates. ... 
These plates usually move along smoothly but sometimes they stick and build up 
pressure ... The crust and the upper layer of the mantle together make up a zone 
of rigid,... [DOC] [TLE] Earth's Crust, Lithosphere and Asthenosphere - Windows to the ... [PAR] The tectonic plates are made up of Earth's crust and the upper part of the mantle 
layer underneath. ... These puzzle pieces move a little bit each year as they slide 
on top of a ... This picture shows how the rigid outer layer of the Earth,...more... [DOC] [TLE] Plate tectonics - Wikipedia [PAR] Plate tectonics is a scientific theory describing the large-scale motion of 7 large 
plates and the ... The lithosphere, which is the rigid outermost shell of a planet (
the crust and upper ... Tectonic plates are able to move because the Earth's 
lithosphere has greater ... These boundaries are discussed in further detail below
. [DOC] [TLE] Lithosphere - Wikipedia [PAR] A lithosphere is the rigid, outermost shell of a terrestrial-type planet or natural 
satellite that is defined by its rigid mechanical properties. On Earth, it is 
composed of the crust and the portion of the upper mantle that .... Geophysical 
studies in the early 21st century posit that large pieces of the lithosphere have 
been subducted... [DOC] [TLE] plate tectonics | geology | Britannica.com [PAR] Dec 2, 2015 ... The lithosphere is broken up into about a dozen large plates and several small 
ones. ... Collectively, these studies show that Earth can be internally divided into 
.... The life span of the oceanic crust is prolonged by its rigidity, but ..... that Earth's 
outer layer is made up of large, moving pieces called plates. [DOC] [TLE] Introduction to Plate Tectonics [PAR] Plates are large pieces of the upper few hundred kilometers of Earth that move 
more or less as a single unit. It is easier to think of plates as rigid "rafts" floating 
on... [DOC] [TLE] Continental Drift and Seafloor Spreading - Dive and Discover [PAR] The Keys to Modern Earth and Oceanographic Sciences ... They noticed first that 
these ridges stretched on for thousands of kilometers in long, ... drift and seafloor 
spreading hypotheses to propose the theory of plate tectonics. Tuzo said that 
Earth's crust, or lithosphere, was divided into large, rigid pieces called plates. 
These... [DOC] [TLE] The Earth: Differentiation and Plate Tectonics [PAR] Chapter 3: The Earth: Differentiation & Plate Tectonics ... We know now that these 
structures are more a reflection of cooling history, and probably could not have ... 
physical properties of the various layers (density, velocity of sound) are largely 
due to seismic studies. ...

Question: Tectonics studies these rigid pieces of the Earth's crust that cover large areas
Answer: Plates