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Multiple Choice

The four major layers of the Earth from exterior to interior are:

Think about how Earth is built from the outside in. The crust is the outermost solid shell we live on, though it’s relatively thin. Beneath it lies the mantle, a much thicker layer of rock that behaves plastically over long timescales. Below the mantle is the outer core, which is a liquid layer of iron and nickel; its motion generates Earth’s magnetic field. At the center sits the inner core, a solid sphere kept solid by immense pressures. So the order from exterior to interior is crust, mantle, outer core, inner core. If a sequence swapped the crust and mantle or placed the inner core above the outer core, it would contradict what seismic and geophysical data tell us about these boundaries and states.

Think about how Earth is built from the outside in. The crust is the outermost solid shell we live on, though it’s relatively thin. Beneath it lies the mantle, a much thicker layer of rock that behaves plastically over long timescales. Below the mantle is the outer core, which is a liquid layer of iron and nickel; its motion generates Earth’s magnetic field. At the center sits the inner core, a solid sphere kept solid by immense pressures. So the order from exterior to interior is crust, mantle, outer core, inner core. If a sequence swapped the crust and mantle or placed the inner core above the outer core, it would contradict what seismic and geophysical data tell us about these boundaries and states.