craton
craton — noun
1. In geology, a craton is a very old portion of the Earth's outer layer which has
In geology, a craton is a very old portion of the Earth's outer layer which has stayed still and unchanged for extremely long periods, serving as the solid foundation at the heart of a landmass.
Dr. Elena Souza published a paper on the ancient craton beneath West Africa.
collocation: ancient craton / craton beneath [place]
The Canadian Shield, a vast craton, contains some of Earth's oldest surface rocks.
Hamza and his team mapped the boundary where the craton meets the younger rock.
Unlike the folded mountains nearby, this craton has stayed flat for billions of years.
Geologists found diamonds linked to the deep roots of the Siberian craton.
- continental shield
refers specifically to a craton where the ancient rock is exposed at the surface rather than buried
- cratonic basement
used when describing the craton as the foundation layer beneath younger sedimentary rock
- stable block
a more general term for any stable crustal region, not necessarily as old as a craton
- continental core
describes the craton's role as the central mass of a continent
- mobile belt
a region of the crust that experiences frequent tectonic activity — the opposite of a stable craton
- orogenic zone
a region where mountains are actively forming, in contrast to the stillness of a craton
文法句型
craton + verb (is / was / contains)
the + craton + of + [place]
用法筆記
This term belongs almost exclusively to geology. Cratons are distinct from younger, more active regions such as mountain belts, which undergo constant deformation.