- What property is used to divide the Earth into distinct layers?
Changes in chemical composition are used to divide the Earth into distinct layers.
- Which layer takes up most of the Earth’s volume?
The mantle takes up most (84%) of the Earth’s volume.
- Compare and contrast the inner core and the outer core.
Both the inner core and the outer core consist primarily of iron. The inner core, however, is solid, while the outer core is liquid.
- Distinguish between the lithosphere and the asthenosphere.
The solid, rigid lithosphere consists of the crust and the very upper part of the mantle. The asthenosphere is a layer of plastic mantle rock directly below the lithosphere on which the lithosphere floats.
- From where does the interior of the Earth get its heat?
A small amount of the Earth’s internal heat comes from residual heat left over from the formation of the Earth. The majority of the heat in the Earth’s interior, however, comes from radioactive decay.