craton
a relatively rigid and immobile region of continental portions of the earth's crust.
Origin of craton
1- See also platform (def. 17), shield (def. 13).
Words Nearby craton
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use craton in a sentence
Using material from cratons in Australia and Greenland that are billions of years old, the team measured the chemistry of more than 2,000 bits of rock.
Passing through the Milky Way’s arms may have helped form Earth’s solid ground | Katherine Kornei | September 13, 2022 | Science NewsMost ancient continents, including the Singhbhum craton, are made of granites, which formed through the melting of pre-existing rocks at the base of the crust.
The First Continents Bobbed to the Surface More Than Three Billion Years Ago, Study Shows | Priyadarshi Chowdhury | November 10, 2021 | Singularity Hub
British Dictionary definitions for craton
/ (ˈkreɪtən) /
geology a stable part of the earth's continental crust or lithosphere that has not been deformed significantly for many millions, even hundreds of millions, of years: See shield (def. 7)
Origin of craton
1Derived forms of craton
- cratonic (krəˈtɒnɪk), adjective
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for craton
[ krā′tŏn′ ]
A large portion of a continental plate that has been relatively undisturbed since the Precambrian era and includes both shield and platform layers.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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