A diagram of the asthenosphere, which aids plate tectonics, where researchers at the UT Austin Jackson School of Geosciences say they detected a global layer of partial melt (shown in speckled red).

Plate tectonics (from the Greek τέκτων; tektōn, meaning "builder" or "mason") describes the large scale motions of Earth's lithosphere ... plates ride on the asthenosphere.

Its study includes plate tectonics, volcanism ... 3D seismic reflection images of the lithosphere–asthenosphere boundary beneath Axial volcano show a magma assimilation front that focuses ...