Editing Lithosphere (section)

==== Continental lithosphere ====
{{Further|Continental crust|Subcontinental lithospheric mantle}}
[[File:Lithosphere of Earth - Idealized Cross-section.jpg|thumb|upright=1.75|Idealized cross-section of Earth's lithosphere (Abbreviations: cb=cratonic [[Sedimentary basin|basin]], LIP=[[large igneous province]], MOR=[[mid-ocean ridge]])]]
Continental lithosphere has a range in thickness from about {{convert|40|km}} to perhaps {{convert|280|km}};<ref name="lithothick" /> the upper approximately {{convert|30|to|50|km}} of typical continental lithosphere is crust. The crust is distinguished from the upper mantle by the change in chemical composition that takes place at the [[Mohorovičić discontinuity|Moho discontinuity]]. The oldest parts of continental lithosphere underlie [[craton]]s, and the mantle lithosphere there is thicker and less dense than typical; the relatively low density of such mantle "roots of cratons" helps to stabilize these regions.<ref name="Composition and development of the"/><ref name="Doilithos"/>

Because of its relatively low density, continental lithosphere that arrives at a subduction zone cannot subduct much further than about {{cvt|100|km}} before resurfacing. As a result, continental lithosphere is not recycled at subduction zones the way oceanic lithosphere is recycled. Instead, continental lithosphere is a nearly permanent feature of the Earth.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Ernst|first1=W. G.|title=Metamorphism, partial preservation, and exhumation of ultrahigh-pressure belts|journal=Island Arc|date=June 1999|volume=8|issue=2|pages=125–153|doi=10.1046/j.1440-1738.1999.00227.x|bibcode=1999IsArc...8..125E|s2cid=128908164}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1029/2001RG000108|title=Subduction zones|journal=[[Reviews of Geophysics]]|volume=40|issue=4|pages=1012|year=2002|last1=Stern|first1=Robert J.|bibcode=2002RvGeo..40.1012S|s2cid=247695067|doi-access=free}}</ref>