How does the earths core stay solid when it is so hot?
That does seem odd, doesn’t it. Actually, despite being so hot, the rocks in the earth’s mantle and core are under extremely high pressures from the weight of all that rock above pushing down. This pressure counteracts the tendency of rocks to melt from heat. If we could reach into the earth and grab a barrel of rock from the core or mantle and suddenly bring it to the surface without losing heat, it would surely melt instantly. However, we do think that at least the outer part of the earth’s core is molten, and only the center of the core may be solid. Part of this difference may be because the composition of those areas is different, not because of differences in temperature and pressure.
