Earth's Inner Core

Science Café Topic: How the Earth's Inner Core Formed

with James A. Van Orman, Ph.D, & Steven A. Hauck, II, Ph.D

EEPS (Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences) Department, Case Western Reserve University

SEPTEMBER 10, 2018

The following resources and titles provide an additional look at the topics of this month's talk for you to explore further (along with some fiction titles just for fun). Enjoy!

Non-Fiction

Deep Earth : Physics And Chemistry Of The Lower Mantle And Core by Hidenori Terasaki (2016)
- In recent years, we have just reached a stage where we can perform measurements at the conditions of the center part of the Earth using state-of-the-art techniques, and many reports on the physical and chemical properties of the deep Earth have come out very recently. Novel theoretical models have been complementary to this breakthrough. These new inputs enable us to compare directly with results of precise geophysical and geochemical observations. This volume highlights the recent significant advancements in our understanding of the deep Earth that have occurred as a result... (Excerpt, book description)
- Into The Heart Of Our World : A Journey To The Center Of The Earth : A Remarkable Voyage Of Scientific Discovery by David Whitehouse (2016)
  - An enthralling and extraordinary adventure vividly charting the mysteries of the deep Earth, the history of our planet, and the latest discoveries about its inner core. The journey to the center of the earth is a voyage like no other we can imagine. Over 3000 km below the earth's surface, an extraordinary inner world the size of Mars awaits us. Dive through the molten iron of the outer core and eventually you will reach a solid sphere —an iron-clad world held within a metal sea and unattached to anything above. At the earth's core is the history of our planet written in temperature and pressure, crystals and minerals ... (Excerpt, book description)
- Earth The Inside Story: The Geology Of Our Planet From Core To Crust To Atmosphere (DVD, 2016)
  - Earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, and extreme weather. Has Earth always been this way? Featuring footage of the world's geographic hotspots, the film traces the story of the 4.5-billion-year-old Earth. (Excerpt, DVD Summary)
- Earth In 100 Groundbreaking Discoveries by Douglas Palmer (2011)
  - Putting the mechanics of tectonics among the first few discoveries he presents, Palmer notes their role in ensuing subjects, from their rearrangement of the continental jigsaw puzzle to their effect on environments and life through such manifestations as mountain building and volcanism. In turn, life's profound symbiosis with planetary geology recurs in Palmer's presentation of such events as its oxygenation of the seas and atmosphere to humanity's contemporary influences on climate. Also covering paleontology, Palmer will provoke the inquisitiveness of his readers, setting them an agenda for further exploration of the evolution of the earth. (Excerpt, Booklist)
- Early Earth Systems: A Geochemical Approach by Hugh Rollinson (2007)
  - Rollinson (Sultan Qaboos Univ.) provides a history of Earth from its beginning until the end of the Archaean era. The difficulty associated with documenting origins of the atmosphere, oceans, and life at such an early age of Earth are very well addressed. Specific topics assist readers in understanding difficult subjects such as geochemical multilevel diagrams. (Excerpt, Choice)
- The Earth Machine: The Science Of A Dynamic Planet by Edmond Mathez (2004)
  - The authors are curators for the geology exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History, and their overview is an accessible mixture of scientific and popular knowledge. Mathez and Webster invariably select, for the purpose of illustrating an important feature of our planet, the most spectacular and best-known structures, such as the Grand Canyon, the Alps, or the Hawaiian Islands. With numerous photographs and graphs, plus sidebars about how rock samples were brought from the field to the New York museum, this survey offers a great foundation for learning about the earth's profound connections, from its center to its atmosphere. (Excerpt, Booklist)
- The Dynamic Structure Of The Deep Earth by Shun'ichirō Karato (2003)
  - Karato (Yale Univ.) addresses the study of the structure and dynamics of Earth's deep interior by integrating a description of Earth materials at the atomic level with global-scale modeling and observations on mantle and core dynamics. Although some differential calculus is included, the bulk of the mathematical formulations consist of elementary algebra, which allows concepts to be grasped more quickly. The book is well written, addresses new theories and concepts while paying due attention to classical work, and probably sets the standard from which future books on the subject will be measured. (Excerpt, Choice)

Fiction

In honor of the title of this month's talk, we offer classic works set at the Earth's core: Jules Verne's A Journey To The Center Of The Earth and the Edgar Rice Burrough's series set in the hollow world of Pellucidar:

A Journey To The Center Of The Earth by Jules Verne (originally published in 1864 as Voyage au Centre de la Terre)

Pellucidar is "a world within our world, a place where the horizon curves upward and merges with the sky. Here time stands still, for Pellucidar is illuminated by a miniature sun that never sets but hovers motionless in the sky." Did Burroughs unwittingly foreshadow the 1936 discovery of the Earth's core to serve as Pellucidar's "sun"?

At The Earth's Core (originally published in 1914)
- This commemorative edition features an introduction by Gregory A. Benford and an afterword on the science of At the Earth's Core by Phillip R. Burger.
Sequels: Pellucidar (1915); Tanar of Pellucidar (1929); Tarzan At The Earth's Core (1929); Back To The Stone Age (1937); Land of Terror (1944, written in 1939); Savage Pellucidar (1963, stories from 1942)

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