What is the process of heat moving through the mantle called?

What is the process of heat moving through the mantle called?

Mantle convection is the process by which the excess heat in the Earth’s deep interior is transferred to its surface through the fluid-like motions of the rocks in the mantle. Convection occurs in the Earth’s mantle because it is the most efficient way for the Earth to cool or dispose of its deep-seated heat content.

What type of heating is going on in the mantle of the Earth?

The main heat transfer mechanism in the Earth’s mantle is convection, a thermally driven process where heating at depth causes material to expand and become less dense, causing it to rise while being replaced by complimentary cool material that sinks.

What is the process of intense heat rising and cooling in the mantle?

Mantle convection is the very slow creeping motion of Earth’s solid silicate mantle caused by convection currents carrying heat from the interior to the planet’s surface. This hot added material cools down by conduction and convection of heat.

What happens when the mantle is heated?

The mantle is heated from below (the core), and in areas that are hotter it rises upwards (it is buoyant), whereas in areas that are cooler it sink down. This convection takes place in mantle rock (a mixture of silicate minerals) that at any given time would appear solid to us.

What is the process that brings heat from the lower mantle toward the crust?

The lower mantle is heated directly by conduction from the core. In conduction, heat is transferred as atoms collide. The rising and sinking of warm and cooler material is called convection. Conduction brings hot material up toward the surface.

What causes convection in the mantle?

Convection Currents in the Mantle Heat in the mantle comes from the Earth’s molten outer core, decay of radioactive elements and, in the upper mantle, friction from descending tectonic plates. The temperature difference between the upper and lower boundaries of the mantle requires heat transfer to occur.

In what part of the mantle does convection current occur?

The heat rising from the Earth’s core creates convection currents in the plastic layer of the mantle (asthenosphere).