Genrev Juan
BSCE-221D
EARTH STRUCTURE AND COMPOSITION
The structure of the earth is divided into four major
components: the crust, the mantle, the outer core, and the inner core.
Each layer has a unique chemical composition, physical state, and
can impact life on Earth's surface.
The Earth is made out of many things. Deep inside Earth,
near its center, lies Earth's core which is mostly made up of nickel
and iron. Above the core is Earth's mantle, which is made up of rock
containing silicon, iron, magnesium, aluminum, oxygen and other
minerals. The rocky surface layer of Earth, called the crust, is made
up of mostly oxygen, silicon, aluminum, iron, calcium, sodium,
potassium and magnesium. Earth's surface is mainly covered with
liquid water and its atmosphere is mainly nitrogen and oxygen, with
smaller amounts of carbon dioxide, water vapor and other gases.
The Four Major Components of Earth.
1. Crust
Crust describes the outermost shell of a terrestrial planet. Our planet’s thin, 40-kilometer (25-mile)
deep crust—just 1% of Earth’s mass—contains all
known life in the universe.
According to sandatlas (2012), the crust is
composed of more than 90% on the crust is
composed of silicate minerals. Most abundant
silicates are feldspars (plagioclase (39%) and alkali
feldspar (12%)). Other common silicate minerals are
quartz (12%) pyroxenes (11%), amphiboles (5%),
micas (5%), and clay minerals (5%). The rest of the
silicate family comprises 3% of the crust. Only 8% of
the crust is composed of non-silicates — carbonates,
oxides, sulfides, etc.
Roughly three fourths of crust is covered by
sedimentary rocks and loose sediments such as soil,
sand, dirt, and many more.
Fig.1 The four major components of Earth.
2. Mantle
The mantle is the mostly solid bulk of Earth’s interior. The mantle lies between Earth’s dense,
superheated core and its thin outer layer, the crust. The mantle is about 2,900 kilometers (1,802 miles) thick,
and makes up a whopping 84 percent of Earth’s total volume.
The rocks that make up Earth’s mantle are mostly silicates—a wide variety of compounds that share
a silicon and oxygen structure. Common silicates found in the mantle include olivine, garnet, and pyroxene.
The other major type of rock found in the mantle is magnesium oxide. Other mantle elements include iron,
aluminum, calcium, sodium, and potassium.
The viscosity of the mantle also varies greatly. It is mostly solid rock, but less viscous at tectonic
plate boundaries and mantle plumes. Mantle rocks there are soft and able to move plastically (over the
course of millions of years) at great depth and pressure.
The mantle is divided into several layers: the upper mantle, the transition zone, the lower mantle,
and D” (D double-prime), the strange region where the mantle meets the outer core.
3. Outer Core
The outer core, about 2,200 kilometers (1,367 miles) thick, is mostly composed of liquid iron and
nickel. The NiFe alloy of the outer core is very hot, between 4,500° and 5,500° Celsius (8,132° and 9,932°
Fahrenheit). The liquid metal of the outer core has very low viscosity, meaning it is
easily deformed and malleable. It is the site of violent convection.
4. Inner Core
The inner core is a hot, dense ball of (mostly) iron. It has a radius of about 1,220 kilometers (758
miles). Temperature in the inner core is about 5,200° Celsius (9,392° Fahrenheit). The pressure is nearly 3.6
million atmospheres (atm).
Continental Drift and Plate Tectonics
National Geologist Society, the idea that continents
moved over time had been proposed before the
20th century. However, a German scientist named Alfred
Wegener changed the scientific debate. Wegener published
two articles about a concept called continental drift in 1912.
He suggested that 200 million years ago,
a supercontinent he called Pangaea began to break into
pieces, its parts moving away from one another. The
continents we see today are fragments of
that supercontinent. To support his theory, Wegener pointed
to matching rock formations and similar fossils in Brazil and
West Africa. In addition, South America and Africa looked
like they could fit together like puzzle pieces.
Fig.2 The theory of continental drift using the remained fossils
Continental drift is a process of how continents move over time. According to Alfred
Wegner (Early 20th Century) had a theory of how continents drift across the earth and it was
the theory of continental drift. He was convinced that the continents that the earth have is
a part of a supercontinent called Pangaea and due to the continental drift, the
supercontinent Pangaea divided into our called continents today.
Fig.3 Alfred Wegner, who proposed
the theory of continental drift
Tectonic plates, large slabs
of rock that divide Earth's crust,
move constantly to reshape the
Earth's landscape. The system of
ideas behind plate tectonics theory
suggests that Earth's outer shell
(lithosphere) is divided into several
plates that glide over the Earth's
rocky inner layer above the soft core
(mantle). The theory of plate
tectonics revolutionized the earth
sciences by explaining how the
movement of geologic plates causes
mountain building, volcanoes, and
earthquakes. This theory believes
how our landforms are created. The
theory of Continental drift has shifted
Fig.4 Locations of major tectonic plate in different continents.
to the theory of plate tectonics.
Earth Processes
USGS defined that Geologic Processes involve interactions of the atmosphere, biosphere, cryosphere,
hydrosphere, and lithosphere. The field of Earth Surface Processes considers the physical and chemical
fluxes across the Earth's surface, the processes that determine these fluxes, and the resulting landscapes.
The USGS defines Geologic Processes as all types of processes affecting geologic structures. These include:
• Earthquakes,
• Erosion,
• Glaciation,
• Land subsidence,
• Liquefaction,
• Sedimentation,
• Tectonic processes,
• Volcanic Activity,
• Deformation, and more.
Weathering
Weathering describes the breaking down or
dissolving of rocks and minerals on the surface of the
Earth. Water, ice, acids, salts, plants, animals, and
changes in temperature are all agents of weathering.
Once a rock has been broken down, a process
called erosion transports the bits of rock and mineral
away. No rock on Earth is hard enough to resist the
forces of weathering and erosion. Together, these
processes carved landmarks such as the Grand Canyon,
in the U.S. state of Arizona. This massive canyon is 446
kilometers (277 miles) long, as much as 29 kilometers (18
miles) wide, and 1,600 meters (1 mile) deep. Fig.5 Example of weathering to a rock
According to British Geological Survey (UKRI 2024),there are three types of weathering and these are the
Biological, Chemical, and Physical Weathering.
Biological Weathering is caused by the movement of plants and animals.
Chemical Weathering the process of chemicals in rainwater making changes to the minerals in a rock.
Physical Weathering occurs when physical processes affect the rock, such as changes in temperature or
when the rock is effects of wind, rain and waves.
Fig.6 An Example of Biological Fig. 7 An Example of Chemical Fig. 8 An Example of Physical
Weathering. Trees put down roots Weathering. Honeycomb weathering of Weathering. This cement bollard is
through joints or cracks in the rock in sandstone located on the shores of being weathered mechanically
order to find moisture. Puget Sound. Photo: Collin Smith , U.S.
Geological Survey. Public domain
REFERENCES:
Alfred Wegner (early 20th century), The Theory of Continental Drift
https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/continental-drift/
IPAC, Definition and Composition of Earth’s Crust https://coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu/ask/58-What-is-Earth-made-
of-#:~:text=The%20Earth%20is%20made%20out,aluminum%2C%20oxygen%20and%20other%20minerals.
National Geographic (2024), Definition of earth’s structure
https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/resource-library-earth-structure/
National Geographic (2024), Definition and Composition of Earth’s Mantle
https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/mantle/
National Geographic (2024), Definition and Composition of Earth’s Core
https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/core/
National Geographic (2024), Definition of Weathering https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/weathering/
UKRI (2024), Types of Weathering https:// www.bgs.ac.uk/discovering-geology/geological-processes/weathering/
USGS (2017), Definition of Earth Processes and its examples https://www.usgs.gov/global-fiducials-library-data-
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