Understanding of secular evolution of the Earth system is based largely on the rock and
mineral archive preserved in the continental lithosphere. Based on the frequency and range …

The Earth as a planetary system has experienced significant change since its formation c.
4.54 Gyr ago. Some of these changes have been gradual, such as secular cooling of the …

The lower plate is the dominant agent in modern convergent margins characterized by
active subduction, as negatively buoyant oceanic lithosphere sinks into the asthenosphere …

Granitoids are a major component of the continental crust. They play a pivotal role in its
evolution, either by adding new material (continental growth), or by reworking older …

Improvements in experimental, analytical and computational methodologies together with
published studies yielding seemingly contradictory results prompted us to return to the …

The non-cylindrical character of the Variscan Belt is established via a description of its most
salient geological characteristics and correlations among the main and relatively minor …

Short-and long-term processes at or close to the subduction plate interface (eg, mineral
transformations, fluid release, seismicity and more generally deformation) might be more …

Earth's silica-rich continental crust is unique among the terrestrial planets and is critical for
planetary habitability. Cratons represent the most imperishable continental fragments and …

Continental crust is the archive of Earth history. The spatial and temporal distribution of
Earth's record of rock units and events is heterogeneous; for example, ages of igneous …

Subduction zones not only return oceanic lithosphere into the mantle, but are also sites
where chemical components are transferred from the downgoing plate back to the surface in …