Mohorovičić discontinuityn.
/məʊhəˈrəʊvɪtʃɪtʃ dɪskɒntᵻˌnjuːᵻti/, U.S. /ˌmoʊhəˈroʊvɪtʃɪtʃ ˌdɪsˌkɑn(t)əˈˌn(j)uədi/; see also discontinuity n. Geology.
= Moho n.3
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the world > the earth > structure of the earth > [noun] > crust > discontinuity between crust and mantle
Mohorovičić discontinuity1934
Moho1956
1934 C. G. Dahm Stud. Dilatational Wave Velocity (D.Phil. thesis, St. Louis University) 9 Now in order to apply the Herglotz-Wiechert method, it is necessary to strip the earth to the depth of the Mohorovicic discontinuity.
1936 J. B. Macelwane in J. B. Macelwane & F. W. Sohon Introd. Theoret. Seismol. I. viii. 204 We shall speak of this major boundary above which the various surficial layers lie as the Mohorovičić discontinuity, after A. Mohorovičić who discovered it.
1952 Jrnl. Geophysical Res. 57 229 Scientists now recognize some half-dozen subdivisions of the interior below the Mohorovicic discontinuity which marks the base of the crust.
1958 Nature 13 Sept. 692/1 The Mohorovičić discontinuity is the boundary between the mantle and the assorted surface rocks of the earth, and it marks a very sharp change in the velocity with which earthquake waves travel.
1971 I. G. Gass et al. Understanding Earth iii. 58/2 On the basis of seismic velocities, the mantle is usually divided into three regions—from the Mohorovicic discontinuity down to 400 km, from 400 to 1000 km, and from 1000 km to the core boundary.
1996 Sci. Amer. Jan. 63/1 At the base of the crust lies the so-called Mohorovicic discontinuity (a tongue-twisting name geologists invariably shorten to ‘Moho’).
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2002; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1934