Lesson 1Primary reference sources and where to extract real data: recommended textbooks, review papers, and institutional data repositories (e.g., USGS, IRIS, DOI links)This part shows students the best places to get data on Earth composition and structure. It points out important textbooks, review papers, and places like USGS and IRIS, and teaches ways to access, cite, and keep quantitative datasets up to date.
Core textbooks on Earth structure and compositionKey review papers and classic reference modelsUSGS, IRIS, and other institutional portalsUsing DOIs and citation practices for datasetsDownloading, formatting, and documenting dataLesson 2Physical states and rheology: solids, partially molten zones, liquid outer core, solid inner core; factors controlling phase (pressure, temperature, composition)Here we talk about physical states and flow across Earth’s inside, from hard crust to soft mantle and liquid core. You will link phase to pressure, temperature, composition, and gases, and look at partly melted and weak areas.
Elastic, brittle, and ductile deformation regimesAsthenosphere and low-velocity zonesPartial melt generation and segregationViscosity controls: T, P, grain size, and fluidsRheology of the liquid outer core and solid inner coreLesson 3Outer core composition: Fe-Ni alloy with light elements (S, O, Si, C, H); measured constraints from seismology and cosmochemistryThis part looks at outer core as liquid iron-nickel mix with light elements. You will combine earthquake studies, density gaps, and space chemistry to check possible parts and what they mean for Earth’s magnetic field generator.
Seismic evidence for a liquid metallic outer coreDensity deficit relative to pure liquid ironCandidate light elements: S, O, Si, C, and HCosmochemical and experimental constraintsImplications for convection and the geodynamoLesson 4Typical densities and density ranges: average values for continental crust, oceanic crust, upper/lower mantle, outer core, inner core with sources (kg/m^3)This part gives usual density ranges for main Earth layers and explains how we find them. You will connect density to makeup, pressure, and mineral changes, and learn to use standard models and tables for number problems.
Densities of continental and oceanic crustUpper and lower mantle density structureOuter and inner core density estimatesMethods: seismology, gravity, and mineral physicsUsing PREM and similar reference Earth modelsLesson 5Mantle composition: peridotite end-members (olivine, orthopyroxene, clinopyroxene, garnet); major elements (Mg, Fe, Si, O) and trace elementsThis part studies mantle rocks mainly peridotite, focusing on olivine, pyroxenes, and garnet. You will link main and trace elements to how they stay stable, melt, and match earthquake and other observations of mantle build.
Olivine structure, chemistry, and stability fieldOrthopyroxene and clinopyroxene in mantle rocksGarnet versus spinel facies in the upper mantleMajor element budgets: Mg, Fe, Si, and OTrace elements and mantle melting signaturesLesson 6Bulk elemental abundances of Earth: Fe, O, Si, Mg, S, Ni, Al, Ca; source datasets and where to find themHere we review whole Earth element amounts, stressing iron, oxygen, silicon, magnesium, and others. You will learn how guesses come from space rocks, mantle samples, and models, and practice finding and reading global makeup data.
Chondritic reference models for bulk EarthPartitioning of Fe, Ni, and siderophile elementsSilicate Earth versus total Earth compositionGlobal budgets of O, Si, Mg, and volatile SUsing published compilations and online databasesLesson 7Inner core composition: predominantly Fe-Ni with possible light-element admixture; crystallinity and seismic constraintsThis part checks inner core mainly iron-nickel, possible light elements, and crystal structure. You will look at earthquake limits, direction differences, and phase links, and weigh different ideas for inner core growth and layers.
Fe–Ni alloy and candidate light elementsSeismic velocities, anisotropy, and layeringSolidification, latent heat, and core growthCrystal structure: bcc, hcp, and phase relationsConstraints from high-pressure laboratory experimentsLesson 8Crust composition: continental vs oceanic; major oxides (SiO2, Al2O3, FeO, CaO, Na2O, K2O, MgO) and typical minerals (feldspars, quartz, mica, pyroxene, olivine)This part compares land and sea crust makeups, stressing main oxides, standard minerals, and plate settings. You will read whole-rock data, link oxides to minerals, and contrast light, middle, and heavy crust areas.
Average continental crustal oxide compositionAverage oceanic crust and mid-ocean ridge basaltsLinking oxides to minerals: quartz and feldsparsMafic versus felsic crustal sections and layeringCrustal evolution through magmatism and recycling
