Tectonics.........is the study of large-scale features in planetary lithospheres that have resulted from deformation. Thus, tectonics concerns the nature and origin of features that would be visible in a single glance at regional geologic maps, maps of the physical face of the earth, or images of planets and moons: for example, ocean basins and continents, regionally developed faults and systems of fractures, mountain ranges and topographically subdued shields, and volcanic arcs. Many tectonic features on the earth are immediately visible because they contribute to the physical appearance of the environment of life. 

Research in tectonics seeks not only to characterize large-scale features but also to investigate the deformations, forces and displacements responsible for them. As such, tectonics is inseparably linked to structural geology , which is the study of deformation at all scales. Research in tectonics has always been distinguished by two additional attributes, regardless of the size or scope of a particular project. .... it is inherently multidisciplinary and integrative, and, like the Greek tecton, or builder, it employs diverse tools. To study, for example, the growth and decay of mountainous topography, we need to investigate not only the forces and displacements at relevant plate boundaries, but also phenomena as diverse as the influence of climate on fluvial erosion and the influence of orogenic topography on local precipitation and global climate.