The Earth is made up of a total of 7 layers which are- crust, lithosphere (crust and uppermost mantle), asthenosphere (upper mantle directly below the lithosphere), lower mantle, outer core and ...

Below the lithosphere is the asthenosphere — a viscous layer kept malleable by heat deep within the Earth. It lubricates the undersides of Earth's tectonic plates, allowing the lithosphere to move.

Here the mantle melts to form molten magma which rises as the plates move apart and then cools to form new oceanic lithosphere. This new material is less dense than the asthenosphere, but cools and ...

Below the lithosphere, but still in the mantle, you will find the asthenosphere - the denser, weaker layer which lies between about 100-400km below the surface of the Earth. The lithosphere and ...