The Mohorovičić Discontinuity, commonly referred to as the "Moho," is the boundary between the Earth's crust and the underlying mantle. It was named after the Croatian seismologist Andrija Mohorovičić, who discovered this discontinuity in 1909 through the study of seismic waves.
Seismic waves travel at different speeds depending on the material they are passing through. When these waves reach the Moho, they encounter a transition from the less dense rocks of the crust (like granites and basalts) to the denser rocks of the mantle (like peridotite). This sudden increase in density causes the seismic waves to accelerate, which led to the identification of the Moho.
The depth of the Mohorovičić Discontinuity varies:
- It is located at an average depth of about 5 to 10 kilometers beneath the ocean floors.
- Beneath continental crust, it can reach depths of 20 to 90 kilometers.
The Moho is significant in geology and tectonics as it marks the transition between the different layers of the Earth and provides insights into the composition and behavior of the Earth’s internal structure.
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