Mon Prof Augmenté
Hot Rock Moves Earth’s Plates
Open to everyone until Friday, October 2
To keep it, print it while it is open.
Rock deep in the mantle gets heated, becomes lighter, and rises. Cooler rock sinks, and this slow churn drags the broken outer shell sideways.
In the picture
- A glowing column of hot mantle rock moving upward
- A sideways sweep of mantle rock near the outer shell
- A darker stream of cooler mantle rock sinking downward
- A cracked outer shell segment sliding sideways above the mantle
Examples
- Soup simmering in a pot: warm soup rises, cooler soup sinks, and the surface drifts.
- A lava lamp: warm blobs rise and cooler blobs sink.
Key takeaways
- Hot mantle rock is less dense, so it rises; cooler rock is denser, so it sinks.
- The moving mantle drags the cracked outer shell, so the plates shift slowly.
Carry on in the app
Three questions on this lesson, to check the idea stuck. Free in the app while the lesson is in the free week.
At least one new illustrated lesson every weekday for your child’s year, with its quiz and a reminder at 6:15 pm.
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