Earth’s Internal Structure and Plate tectonics

Previous Class: Origin of Earth and building blocks

of our planets.
 Last Class: Review

§  Big Bang Theory (13.7 billions of years ago

§  Nucleosynthesis
§  Supernova Explosion
§  Origin of our Solar System (4.57 billions of years ago)
§  Origin of Earth (4.56 billions of years ago)
§  Origin of Moon (4.51 billions of years ago)
§  Internal Layering (4.47 billions of years ago)
§  Water (3.8 billions of years ago)
§  Oxygen(3.5 billions of years ago)
§  BIF (~3.0 billions of years ago)
Earth’s Layered Structure

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¨  Most of our knowledge of Earth’s interior comes
from the study of earthquake waves.
ú  Travel times of P (compressional) and S (shear) waves
through the Earth vary depending on the properties of
the materials. P waves travel faster than do S waves. S
waves cannot travel through liquids

κ + 4µ / 3 µ
vp = vs =
ρ ρ
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Crust: 1. oceanic - P wave = 5 – 7 km/s
- density = 3 g/cm3
2. continental - seismic velocities vary
- density = 2.7 g/cm3 (buoyant)
Mantle: - 82 % of Earth’s volume, ~ 2900 km thick
- between Moho (base of crust) and the liquid outer
core
- silicate minerals rich in Fe and Mg
- density = between 3.3 and 5.6 g/cm3
Core: - at the mantle-core boundary
» P wave velocities drop from ~13.7 km/s to 8.1 km/s
» S wave velocities drop from ~7.3 km/s to 0 km/s
- density = 9.9 g/cm3
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¨  The speed of seismic waves
ú  Velocity (speed) depends on the stiffness and
compressibility of the intervening material →
information about the composition and
temperature
ú  Faster in more rigid (stiff) and less compressible
rocks
ú  Increases with depth (pressure increases and
squeezes the rock into a more compact, rigid
material) → strongly curved paths

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 Ray Paths in a Layered Medium

sin θ1 / α1 = sin θ2 / α2 = s1 sin θ1 = s2 sin θ2

α = velocity of seismic energy in the layer

α1 α1 Faster
θ1 slower θ1

θ2 Faster θ2 Slower
α2 α2

α1 < α2 α1 > α2

Courtesy J. Mori
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¨  Abrupt changes in seismic-wave velocities
that occur at particular depths helped
seismologists conclude that Earth must be
composed of distinct shells.

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 I. Layers are defined by composition.
ú  Three principal compositional layers
1.  Crust is the comparatively thin outer skin that
ranges from 7 kilometers at the oceanic ridges to 70
kilometers in some mountain belts

2.  Mantle is a solid rocky (silica-rich) shell that

extends to a depth of about 2900 kilometers

3.  Core is an iron-rich sphere having a radius of about

3500 kilometers

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¨  The crust-mantle boundary
¨  The Moho (Mohorovicic) discontinuity
ú  Discovered in 1909 by Andrija Mohoroviĉiĉ
ú  Identified by an abrupt change in the velocity of
P waves at the base of continents (from ~6 km/s
to 8 km/s)

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¨  The mantle-core boundary
ú  Discovered in 1906 by Richard Oldham
ú  Based on the observation that P waves die out
at 100 degrees from the earthquake and
reappear at about 140 degrees
ú  35 degree-wide belt is named
the P-wave shadow zone.

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 P- and S-Wave Shadow Zones

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 II. Layers are defined by physical properties.
ú  With increasing depth, Earth’s interior is characterized
by gradual increases in temperature, pressure, and
density.
ú  Depending on the temperature and depth, a particular
Earth material may behave like a brittle solid, deform
in a plastic–like manner, or melt and become liquid.
ú  Main layers of Earth’s interior are based on physical
properties and hence, mechanical strength.

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I. The Upper Mantle
(Moho → 660 km)
ú  A. Lithosphere (sphere of rock)
­  Earth’s outermost layer
­  Consists of the crust and uppermost mantle
­  Relatively cool, rigid shell
­  Averages about 100 kilometers in thickness,
but may be 250 kilometers
or more thick beneath the older portions of
the continents.

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The Upper Mantle
ú  B. Asthenosphere (weak sphere)
­  Beneath the lithosphere, in the
upper mantle to a depth of about 410
kilometers
­  A small amount of melting in the
upper portion mechanically detaches
the lithosphere from the layer below,
allowing the lithosphere to move
independently of the asthenosphere.

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The Upper Mantle
ú  C. Transition Zone (410 – 660 km)
­  Beneath the asthenosphere, in the
upper mantle, to a depth of about 660
kilometers
­  Top of TZ identified by sudden
increase in density from 3.5 to 3.7 g/
cm3
­  Change in mineral phase:
Olivine → β-spinel → Ringwoodite

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 PERIDOTITE – mainly olivine and pyroxene

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II. The Lower Mantle (Mesosphere)
­  Rigid layer between the depths of 660 kilometers
and 2900 kilometers
­  Largest by volume (56%)
­  Rocks are very hot and capable of
very gradual flow
­  Olivine and Pyroxene
→ Perovskite

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III. The D” Layer
- Boundary layer between the rocky mantle and the liquid Fe
outer core
- “Graveyard” of some subducted oceanic lithosphere
and “birthplace” of some mantle plumes

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IV. The Outer Core
­  Composed mostly of an iron-nickel alloy
­  Lower amounts of S, O, Si, H
­  Liquid layer
­  Density of ~ 9.9 g/cm3
­  Around 2300 kilometers
­  A convective flow within generates Earth’s
magnetic field

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 IV. The Inner Core
­  Sphere of Fe with a radius of around 1200
kilometers
­  Stronger than the outer core
­  Behaves like a solid
­  Did not exist early in Earth’s history
­  Started to form as Earth cooled and Fe began to
crystallize at the center
­  P waves passing through the inner core show
increased velocity, suggesting that the inner core is
solid

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 Major processes that have contributed to Earth’s
internal heat
ú  Heat emitted by radioactive decay of isotopes of uranium
(U), thorium (Th), potassium (K), aluminum (Al), calcium
(Ca), etc.
ú  Heat released as iron crystallized to form the solid inner core
ú  Heat released by collisions of countless planetesimals (“baby
planets”) during the formation of Earth (kinetic energy →
thermal energy)

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¨  Heat flow
ú  Two main processes operate
within Earth’s interior:
ú  Convection: the transfer of
heat by moving material in a
fluid-like manner in which hot
materials displace those that
are cooler (or vice-versa)
ú  Conduction: the flow of heat
through a material

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I. Convection
ú  Gravity is the driving
force for convection,
leading to gravity
induced buoyancy
ú  Materials must also be
weak enough to flow
ú  Resistance to flow =
viscosity

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 ¨  Mantle convection
ú  Important process in Earth’s interior
ú  Provides the force that propels the rigid
lithospheric plates across the globe.

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II. Conduction
ú  Occurs much more quickly in metals than
rocky substances
ú  Not an efficient way to move heat through
most of Earth
ú  However, important mechanism in the core,
D” layer, and lithosphere

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 ¨  Earth’s temperature gradually increases with an
increase in depth at a rate known as the
geothermal gradient.
ú  Varies considerably from place to place
ú  Averages between about 20 °C and 30 °C per
kilometer in the crust (rate of increase is
much less in the mantle and core)

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 ¨  Seismic tomography
ú  Three-dimensional changes in
composition and density in all parts of
Earth’s interior can be viewed using
seismic waves.
­  The continental lithosphere can extend
hundreds of kilometers into the mantle.
­  Cold, subducted oceanic lithosphere sinks to the
base of the mantle, while mega-plumes rise
upward from the core–mantle boundary.

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Education, Inc.
© 2011 Pearson
Education, Inc.