Glossary · Khoa học Trái Đất
Mantle
The layer between the crust and the core of a rocky planet. On Earth it is the largest part of the solid planet, stretching from the base of the crust down to a depth of about 2,900 km.
Earth's mantle is more or less solid, but at the temperatures and pressures found there, mantle rock can deform and flow slowly. Its density increases with depth from about 3.5 g/cm³ to more than 5 g/cm³, compressed by the weight of the material above. Samples of upper-mantle material are occasionally ejected by volcanoes, allowing its chemistry to be analysed in detail.
Below the mantle, from a depth of 2,900 km, lies Earth's dense metallic core. The other terrestrial planets share the same pattern: a central core, a rocky mantle and a solid crust.