Earth`s Interior
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Transcript Earth`s Interior
EARTH’S INTERIOR
STUDYING BELOW EARTH’S SURFACE
The extreme conditions of Earth’s interior make
it very hard to study the inside of Earth.
We must..
Study rock samples from inside Earth.
Study seismic waves from earthquakes and how they
travel through different parts of Earth.
Seismic wave-a wave of energy that travels
through Earth after an earthquake.
DIGGING DEEP…
The deeper in Earth you get, the hotter the
temperature becomes.
Pressure also increases greatly the deeper you
get.
Pressure is the amount of force on an area.
Density also increases the deeper you get, due to
the pressure.
EARTH’S COMPOSITIONAL LAYERS
Earth’s compositional layers are determined by
density differences.
CRUST
The outermost layer of solid rock including dry
land and the ocean floor.
Thickest under mountains, thinnest in the oceans.
Oceanic crust-darker in color and made of basalt.
Continental (land) crust-lighter in color and made of
granite.
MANTEL
Made up of rock that is very hot, but solid. (3,000
kilometers thick).
The rock in the mantel is soft and flows slowly
but is still considered solid. (if you kicked the
mantel it would hurt your foot).
Convection-the movement of rock because of
differences in density due to temperature.
Hotter rock rises, colder rock sinks.
CORE
Center of Earth
Made of iron and nickel
PHYSICAL LAYERS
Based on whether the layer is solid or liquid.
LITHOSPHERE
Includes the crust and uppermost mantel.
Stiff and rigid.
Divided into tectonic plates.
ASTHENOSPHERE
Soft layer beneath the lithosphere which is more
flexible and can bend.
Tectonic plates float on asthenosphere.
MESOSPHERE
Strong, lower part of the mantel.
Denser than the asthenosphere and therefore
more solid.
OUTER CORE
Liquid layer that surrounds the inner core.
INNER CORE
Dense, solid metal.
High pressure causes the metal to be solid.
EARTH’S MAGNETIC FIELD
Movements in Earth’s liquid core create a
magnetic field.
Planet Earth acts as a giant magnet.