a r t i c l e i n f o Plate tectonics is a self-organizing global system driven by the negative buoyancy of the thermal boundary layer resulting in subduction. Although the signature of plate tectonics is recognized with some confidence in the Phanerozoic geological record of the continents, evidence for plate tectonics becomes less certain further back in time. To improve our understanding of ...

The realization that Earth may have lost heat more slowly in the past than at present has motivated the search for mechanisms to reduce the efficiency of plate tectonics in the past. Several mechanisms have been proposed, such as the resistance to subduction of thick plates (1) produced by deeper melting at higher mantle temperatures (2). We (3) proposed an alternative mechanism, namely subduct...

The evolution of Mars has been greatly influenced by temporal changes in its rheological structure, which may explain the difference in tectonics between Mars and Earth. Some previous studies have shown the rheological structures of Mars calculated from the flow law of rocks and the predicted thermal structure. However, the Peierls mechanism, which is the dominant deformation mechanism at relat...

Plate tectonics was originally established as a kinematic theory of global tectonics, in which the Earth’s rigid outer layer, lithosphere, consists different size plates that move relative to each other along divergent, convergent or transform boundaries overlying ductile asthenosphere. It comprises three elements: lithosphere plates, asthenosphere, and coupled movement systems. operates throug...

Completion of a global geological map of Venus has provided documentation of the relative age relationships, spatial distribution, and topographic configuration of the major geologic units and permitted us to address several important problems concerning the volcanic history of Venus. We use these data to: 1) assess the stratigraphic position of volcanic units and landforms, 2) determine their ...

Plate tectonics is a kinematic description of Earth that treats the outer shell of its mantle as a number of plates or rigid spherical caps that move with respect to each other (see the “Plate tectonics” sidebar). The mantle is the outer, solid 3,000-km-thick shell that overlies Earth’s fluid outer core. An enormous amount of geological and geophysical data has gone into determining the motion ...