Continental Dm Continental The thin serust of the Earth, like the shen of an egg, from is all that protects the surrace and co the Earth at the hot, molten rock inside Deep inside the center is the Core. Between the surface of the Earth and the core is the mantle. Lt is the continents or rather tectonic plates underneath the Earth's surface that move on top of this mantme. These eight major tectonic plates are 100~200 km thick and create the Earth's crust. The movement of continents relative to each other is referred to as continental drift. Understanding how and wh this is happening has important consequences for everyday lives By studying tho