Earth's Mantle
Beneath Earth's crust lies the mantle, a massive layer between the crust and the core.
The mantle is mainly made of a dense rock called peridotite, which contains green olivine and black pyroxene crystals.
Sometimes, volcanic eruptions bring up rare rocks called kimberlite, containing diamonds formed deep in the mantle under extreme pressure and intense heat.
The temperature within the Earth increases with depth reaching 1000°C at the crust's base, 3500°C at the mantle's base, and 5000°C near the Earth's center.
The heat flows from the core into the mantle through a process called conduction, where energy is transferred as atoms collide with one another.
As the lower mantle heats up, the rock becomes lighter and rises. When it reaches the top, it spreads out horizontally and cools down. Over time, cooler, denser rock sinks back toward the core, creating a continuous cycle of rising and sinking rock called mantle convection.
This slow but powerful convection drives plate tectonics, the shifting of Earth’s crust, which causes earthquakes and volcanoes.
Beneath Earth's crust lies the mantle, a massive layer between the crust and the core.
The mantle is mainly made of a dense rock called peridotite, which contains green olivine and black pyroxene crystals.
Sometimes, volcanic eruptions bring up rare rocks called kimberlite, containing diamonds formed deep in the mantle under extreme pressure and intense heat.
The temperature within the Earth increases with depth reaching 1000°C at the crust's base, 3500°C at the mantle's base, and 5000°C near the Earth's center.
The heat flows from the core into the mantle through a process called conduction, where energy is transferred as atoms collide with one another.
As the lower mantle heats up, the rock becomes lighter and rises. When it reaches the top, it spreads out horizontally and cools down. Over time, cooler, denser rock sinks back toward the core, creating a continuous cycle of rising and sinking rock called mantle convection.
This slow but powerful convection drives plate tectonics, the shifting of Earth’s crust, which causes earthquakes and volcanoes.
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