the.com/crust
Earth's brittle skin, thinner relative to the planet than an apple's peel.
means The hard outer layer of something — bread, pie, a wound, or the planet's solid shell over its hotter interior.
from From Latin 'crusta,' meaning a hard shell, rind, or crust, related to a broader Indo-European root suggesting frost, ice, or congealed surfaces — the idea of something liquid or soft hardening over. It came into English through Old French 'crouste.' The geological sense, the cooking sense, and the medical scab all share the same simple image: a tough skin forming over what lies beneath.
- thin layer
- Just 1% of Earth's total volume
- two types
- Oceanic crust is younger, denser, and recyclable
- deepest hole
- Humans drilled only 12km before quitting
- pizza heresy
- Stuffed crust patented by Pizza Hut in 1995
- floats around
- Rides on the mantle like cracked eggshell
mid-ocean ridge — underwater mountain range where new oceanic crust forms, spans 65,000 km globally
san andreas fault — major strike-slip fault in california where pacific and north american crusts meet