Inside the Earth

The layered Earth

• Crust
• Mantle
• Core

• These layers
differ by
temperature,
density,
composition
and pressure
How do we know it’s not just
solid rock?
1. The overall density of the
Earth is much higher than
the density of the rocks we
find on the surface. (This
tells us that there must be
denser material inside)
2. Seismic and sound waves
do not travel at a constant
speed when going through
the earth. Changes in
speed and direction of
waves mean they hit
material of different
density
 The Crust
• Outer layer: we step
on it!
• 5-100 km thick
• 2 types of crust
– Oceanic (very dense,
made of basalt)
– Continental (less
dense, made of
granite)
 Oceanic and Continental Crust
The oceanic crust is thinner than the continental crust but is much denser. It sinks into the
layer underneath
 The Mantle
• Middle layer
• thickest layer
• Heat is transferred
through this layer
from the hot core
to the cooler crust
• Able to flow slowly
due to convection
currents
• Flowing part
called the
asthenosphere
 The Core
• Made mostly of iron
and nickel
• 1/3 of the earth’s
mass
• Very hot
• Radioactivity
creates the energy
that flows as heat
to the other layers
 Earth’s Layers
• How are the earth’s
layers similar to an
egg?

• Shell=crust
• Egg white=mantle
• Yolk=core
 Physical Structure of the Earth
(5 Layers)
• Lithosphere- rigid outer
layer (crust + upper
mantle)
• Asthenosphere- solid
rock that flows slowly (like
hot asphalt)
• Mesosphere- middle layer
(lower mantle)
• Outer Core- liquid layer
• Inner Core- solid, very
dense
 The crust is cracked
• Earth’s crust is broken into about 19
pieces called TECTONIC PLATES
• These plates move on top of the
asthenosphere
 Tectonic plates
• All of earth’s plates are moving and have always
moved
• Alfred Wegener was the first to provide evidence
of the moving landmasses in a theory he called
CONTINENTAL DRIFT
 Evidence that the continents
can move

• From matching fossils on continents now far

removed from each other.
 More evidence

• From the precise, non-random location of

earthquakes
• Age of the ocean floor, showing a pattern of old
and young rocks