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Geothermal power takes advantage of thermal properties found underground. This is a geological phenomenon. Tectonic plates around the world are constantly shifting and large parts of these plates are driven underneath neighboring plates, descending into the Earth's mantle where they melt. At these locations there are often places where the resulting heat which can be 572 °F (300 °C), rises close to the surface. Geothermal power takes advantage of these locations by injecting water thousands of feet into the ground and then taking the superheated water up again where it flashes into a turbine and generates power. Alternatively, ordinary surface soil, which in many places is over 6 feet deep, can take advantage of year round stable temperatures which are about 56 °F (13 °C). In temperate climates this is cool in the summer and warm in the winter. A heat pump can take advantage of these stable temperatures to condition the interior of a buildings with much greater economy and zero carbon emissions than fossil fuels.