Earth’s core has a core!

Researchers have found that the Earth’s inner core, has a smaller than the Moon, inner core of its own!

Image via University of Illinois

Led by Xiaodong Song, a professor of geology at the University of Illinois, and visiting postdoctoral researcher Tao Wang, the team announced on Feb. 9, that they used seismic waves to unveil Earth’s deepest mystery: its inner core.

Song, said:
“Even though the inner core is small – smaller than the moon – it has some really interesting features. It may tell us about how our planet formed, its history, and other dynamic processes of the Earth. It shapes our understanding of what’s going on deep inside the Earth.”

Researchers use seismic waves from earthquakes to scan below the planet’s surface, much like doctors use ultrasound to see inside patients. The team used a technology that gathers data not from the initial shock of an earthquake, but from the waves that resonate in the earthquake’s aftermath. The earthquake is like a hammer striking a bell; much like a listener hears the clear tone that resonates after the bell strike, seismic sensors collect a coherent signal in the earthquake’s coda.

via earthsky

source University of Illinois