it's 400 miles thick
Scientists have discovered that the Earth has a new layer.
Previously, there were only four: crust, mantle, liquid and solid core.
But two seismologists from the Australian National University have discovered that there is a unique layer in the Earth's core. It's a solid metal ball 400 miles thick.
The study found that the ball had a different crystal structure, causing seismic shock waves to reverberate through the layer at different speeds than the surrounding core.
Thanh-Son Pham, the study's lead author, told The Washington Post: “Clearly, the innermost core is different from the outer layer.”
“We think the two regions have slightly different ways of (packing) atoms.”
Seismologists believe the new core was created after “major global events in the past.”
Thanh-Son Phạm and Hrvoje Tkalčić discovered the solid metal core by studying specific earthquakes and monitoring “seismic waves that reverberate throughout the planet.” The researchers analyzed data from about 200 earthquakes of magnitude 6 and above over the past decade.
This allows them to uncover details that were previously overlooked.
In addition to confirming the existence of a solid metal core, also known as the “innermost core,” or IMIC, they made another discovery. Its diameter is 400 miles.
The scientist explained that although the metallic core is still made of the same material as the molten core, it may also have different properties. “We think the way the atoms (pack) in the two regions is slightly different,” Thanh-Son Pham said, adding that this means seismic waves travel at different rates.
Scientists believe that metallic cores may hold the key to understanding how life evolved on Earth.
They added that the metallic core may be a “fossil record” of major tectonic events, and that the core solidified quickly.
“Studying the Earth's center is not only a subject of academic curiosity but can shed light on the evolution of life on Earth's surface,” the researchers wrote in The Conversation.
Read the report here.
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