EASY READ The Earth
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Accessed 13 Sep. 2026.
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What's inside the Earth?
The Earth has a thin rocky shell on the outside called the crust. Beneath the crust lie several layers. All of them are extremely hot. The first layer, the mantle, is made of rocks so hot they have partly melted. Below the mantle is the outer core. This is made of liquid metal. The inner core, at the Earth’s centre, is a solid ball of iron.
Crust
The crust beneath the oceans is a thin layer of volcanic rock. It is no more than 10 kilometres (6 miles) thick. The crust beneath the continents is thicker. This is up to 70 kilometres thick (40 miles).
Mantle
In the mantle, the temperature is 2000°C (3500°F). The molten (melted) rock in the mantle is known as magma. It flows like hot tarmac on a newly surfaced road. Sometimes the magma is forced upwards from the mantle. It may burst through weak points in the Earth’s crust. It erupts at the surface in volcanoes.
Core
In the outer part of the Earth’s core, the temperature soars to 4000°C (more than 7000°F). It is mostly made of iron with small amount of nickel. At this heat, both metals are liquid. At the very centre of the Earth, the weight of all the rocks above squashes the inner core into a solid ball of iron. Scientists think the temperature here is 7500°C (13,500°F).
Consultant: Ian Fairchild
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Earth's interior
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