What are Some Characteristics of the Earths Core?
The Earth has a core composed of two parts: the inner core and the outer core. The outer core is primarily liquid iron, and some nickel, and the inner core is primarily solid iron. For a while it was thought that the inner core was a single iron crystal, though more recent theories predict it is more heterogeneous, with irregular features on scales as low as one kilometer. What we know about the core has been derived from analysis of seismic waves as well as models based on accepted physics and chemistry. The outer core begins at a depth of 2890–5150 kilometers (1790 – 3160 miles) – there is a degree of uncertainty about the precise depth. The inner core begins at a depth of 5150-6360 kilometers (3160-3954 miles). Above the outer core is the mantle, the largest portion of the Earth’s subterranean regions. In comparison to the core, the mantle is highly viscous and continuously circulates. It is the outer core that is responsible for the Earth’s magnetic field. It freely circulates due
The Earth has a core composed of two parts: the inner core and the outer core. The outer core is primarily liquid iron, and some nickel, and the inner core is primarily solid iron. For a while it was thought that the inner core was a single iron crystal, though more recent theories predict it is more heterogeneous, with irregular features on scales as low as one kilometer. What we know about the core has been derived from analysis of seismic waves as well as models based on accepted physics and chemistry. The outer core begins at a depth of 2890—5150 kilometers (1790 — 3160 miles) — there is a degree of uncertainty about the precise depth. The inner core begins at a depth of 5150-6360 kilometers (3160-3954 miles). Above the outer core is the mantle, the largest portion of the Earth’s subterranean regions. In comparison to the core, the mantle is highly viscous and continuously circulates. It is the outer core that is responsible for the Earth’s magnetic field. It freely circu