• Question: What is in the centre of the earth?

    Asked by biancalouiseward to Ben, Clare, Ezzy, Mario, Sam on 21 Mar 2012. This question was also asked by wesaal786.
    • Photo: Elizabeth Pearson

      Elizabeth Pearson answered on 21 Mar 2012:

      No one’s 100% sure, but they recon its a ball of iron. Whether this is a solid lump or is a liwuid with currents isn’t certain.

    • Photo: Mario Campanelli

      Mario Campanelli answered on 21 Mar 2012:

      most likely a liquid ball of melted iron, that creates the earth’s magnetic field

    • Photo: Sam Vinko

      Sam Vinko answered on 21 Mar 2012:

      The core of the Earth is basically iron, at a temperature of ~6000 degrees and at a very high pressure.

      A recent measurement of what iron looks like at those conditions suggests that its a hexagonal crystal, and that iron will only melt at even higher temperatures – so its probably not a liquid ball at all!

      For reference: (Science 15 October 2010: Vol. 330 no. 6002 pp. 359-361 DOI: 10.1126/science.1194662)

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