Why We Want to Find Plate Tectonics in Space

It’s not easy to find active plate tectonics on other worlds, but doing so may bring us one step closer to finding a planet that can support life.

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Sources:
https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2041-8213/abe400
https://www.nature.com/articles/ngeo2707
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0012825220303445
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674987115300062
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https://www.nature.com/articles/ngeo2814
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https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/2041-8205/725/1/L43
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Images

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Planets_everywhere_(artist%E2%80%99s_impression).jpg
https://www.istockphoto.com/photo/scenic-air-shot-of-calbuco-volcano-erupting-gm472312286-64072035
https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/tectonically-active-planet-mercury
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/cultivating-a-planetary-garden-how-long-does-it-take
https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/10931
https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/13635
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/images/illustration-of-trappist-1-planets-as-of-feb-2018
https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/a-glimpse-of-a-rocky-exoplanets-surface
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Oceanic_spreading.svg
https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/20250

Thumbnail Credit

Nasa's Goddard Space Flight Center