There’s a lot more to Earth than meets the eye. Far from being just a roundish rock barreling through space, our planet is composed of several layers held together by intense forces of gravity.
Our planet’s interior is much too deep and hot to explore with probes, so scientists rely on seismic waves to understand and model its structure. Seismic waves are shock waves that propagate through Earth’s layers after an earthquake or explosive event, traveling at different speeds depending on the density and state of the material. The time it takes for these shock waves to bounce back up to Earth’s surface reveals aspects of the composition and physical properties of the rocks beneath.
Geologists today have a good understanding of Earth’s interior, based on pioneering work by Isaac Newton and Danish seismologist Inge Lehmann in the late 17th century and early-to-mid 20th century, respectively.
“Writer Fuel” is a series of cool real-world stories that might inspire your little writer heart. Check out our Writer Fuel page on the LimFic blog for more inspiration.
