Exploratour - The Surface of the Earth

This is a photo of snow covered mountains.
Click on image for full size
Corel Photography

Introduction

This page is the start of the tour which explores the surface of Earth. In this tour, we will describe different features found on the surface, plate tectonics and the result of these shifting plates. Use the navigation button at the top of the page to move through the tour. To go to the next page, just press the forward link on the navigation button.

A map of the Earth shows that the 2/3 of the surface of the Earth is covered with water. Standing above the waters are the continents. These are the green, brown and white parts shown in the movie. The continents form a unique portion of the crust of the Earth known as continental crust. A second and slightly different portion of the crust of the Earth is known as oceanic crust.

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Windows to the Universe, a project of the National Earth Science Teachers Association, is sponsored in part is sponsored in part through grants from federal agencies (NASA and NOAA), and partnerships with affiliated organizations, including the American Geophysical Union, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Earth System Information Partnership, the American Meteorological Society, the National Center for Science Education, and TERC. The American Geophysical Union and the American Geosciences Institute are Windows to the Universe Founding Partners. NESTA welcomes new Institutional Affiliates in support of our ongoing programs, as well as collaborations on new projects. Contact NESTA for more information. NASA ESIP NCSE HHMI AGU AGI AMS NOAA