The lithosphere is the Earth’s rigid outer shell, made up of the crust plus the solid uppermost part of the mantle.

Quick Scoop: What is the Lithosphere?

  • It’s the hard , rocky layer we live on, forming the continents and ocean floors.
  • It includes:
    • The entire crust (continental and oceanic).
* The uppermost mantle where rock is solid and brittle, not flowing.
  • Typical thickness is about 60–100 km, but in places it can be much thicker, especially under old continental regions.
  • This layer is broken into large tectonic plates that “float” on the softer, deeper layer called the asthenosphere.

Why it Matters (in one breath)

Because the lithosphere is split into moving plates, their interactions cause earthquakes, volcanoes, mountain building, and the slow rearrangement of continents over millions of years.