Convection current lab
Convection is a way for heat to transfer from one part of the fluid to another. It works because the fluid near the heat source warms up and makes the atoms more more. This increase of atomic motion requires that the material need more space - and therefore becomes less dense than the surrounding material - and it begins to rise.
Once it reaches the top of the fluid, it begins to cool by releasing it's heat energy to the surrounding environment. Once it does that, the fluid then becomes more dense than the surrounding fluid material and it then begins to sink. The question I'm trying to ask in this lab is how does this relate to the earth and how does that cause earthquakes? The answer is simple... The heat source is the core found within the mantle. This causes the mantle, which is full of hot molten rock material to become hot closest to the core. As it does this, the rocky material becomes less dense than the surrounding mantle material and it begins to rise. Once it reaches the surface, it begins to cool and even solidify on the upper portions called the crust. Earthquakes are caused when a portion of the convection cell moves and breaks the rigid upper crust. |