Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
The silicate mantle of the Earth's moon is approximately 1300–1400 km thick, and is the source of mare basalts. [4] The lunar mantle might be exposed in the South Pole-Aitken basin or the Crisium basin. [4] The lunar mantle contains a seismic discontinuity at ~500 kilometers (310 miles) depth, most likely related to a change in composition. [4]
The internal structure of Earth. Earth's mantle is a layer of silicate rock between the crust and the outer core.It has a mass of 4.01 × 10 24 kg (8.84 × 10 24 lb) and makes up 67% of the mass of Earth. [1]
High-magnesium magmas, such as komatiite and picrite, may also be the products of a high degree of partial melting of mantle rock. [83] Certain chemical elements, called incompatible elements, have a combination of ionic radius and ionic charge that is unlike that of the more abundant elements in the source rock. The ions of these elements fit ...
The upper mantle of Earth is a very thick layer of rock inside the planet, which begins just beneath the crust (at about 10 km (6.2 mi) under the oceans and about 35 km (22 mi) under the continents) and ends at the top of the lower mantle at 670 km (420 mi). Temperatures range from approximately 500 K (227 °C; 440 °F) at the upper boundary ...
Here, is the thickness of the oceanic mantle lithosphere, is the thermal diffusivity (approximately 1.0 × 10 −6 m 2 /s or 6.5 × 10 −4 sq ft/min) for silicate rocks, and is the age of the given part of the lithosphere. The age is often equal to L/V, where L is the distance from the spreading centre of mid-ocean ridge, and V is velocity of ...
Additionally, it contains mantle rock that interacts with seawater in a process known as “serpentinization,” which alters the rock’s structure and gives it a green, marble-like appearance.
The pressure at the bottom of the mantle is ≈140 GPa (1.4 Matm). [24] The mantle is composed of silicate rocks richer in iron and magnesium than the overlying crust. [25] Although solid, the mantle's extremely hot silicate material can flow over very long timescales. [26] Convection of the mantle propels the motion of the tectonic plates in the
The youngest oceanic rocks are at the oceanic ridges, and they get progressively older away from the ridges. [17] As the mantle rises it cools and melts, as the pressure decreases and it crosses the solidus. The amount of melt produced depends only on the temperature of the mantle as it rises. Hence most oceanic crust is the same thickness (7± ...