Iron atoms move in the Earth’s inner core, according to research

According to a new study published in the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), Iron atoms in the solid inner core of planet Earth are moving. The researchers thought they did not move because they were squeezed together by very high pressures, but the paper’s results show that the Earth’s core system is much more complex.

In a study conducted at the University of Texas at Austin in the United States, a group of scientists discovered that iron atoms move in the solid inner core of the Earth; The article also included participation from some contributors in China.

Based on laboratory experiments and theoretical models, The group discovered that some groups of iron atoms can move within the planet’s inner core in a fraction of a second.

This phenomenon is known It is called ‘collective action’ and suggests that there is much more movement than proposed theoretical models. According to Jung-Fu Lin, professor at the University of Austin School of Geological Sciences, data on this fundamental mechanism will help scientists understand the dynamic processes and evolution of the Earth’s inner core.

“Seismologists have discovered that the center of the Earth, called the inner core, is surprisingly soft, just like the butter in your kitchen is soft. The biggest discovery we made is that solid iron becomes surprisingly soft deep within the Earth because its atoms can move,” said China, one of the study’s authors. “This increase in movement makes the inner core less rigid, more vulnerable to shear forces,” said Youjun Zhang, a professor at Sichuan University in China.

Iron atoms in the Earth’s core

In addition to helping explain different integral properties, the researchers also found that the data Providing further insight into the role of the inner core in powering Earth’s geodynamo; a process responsible for generating the planet’s magnetic field.

Since it is impossible to collect Lin and his team recreated a miniature model of the iron plate using samples of the inner core. The temperature, pressure and velocity data collected in the experiment were used in the computational model of the atoms in the inner core. Using machine learning techniques, they created a ‘super cell’ of 30,000 atoms to predict the properties of iron.

The results show that Groups of atoms had a hexagonal structure and moved quicklyThis is a phenomenon that may explain seismic measurements that show a much more flexible core than expected at high pressures and temperatures. Scientists believe the new vision could help explain in detail how energy, heat and magnetic fields are created.

“The researchers said the search for an answer to explain the ‘surprisingly smooth’ physical features reflected in the seismic data is what motivated their research,” an official statement from the University of Texas at Austin said.

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