The August 2002 issue of Discover magazine has a cover story that asks, ‘What’s really at the center of the Earth,” and proposes that the inner core of the Earth may be composed of solid uranium, and that instead of a liquid iron-nickel outer core, the outer core may be composed of solid nickel and silicon. Read this article, “Nuclear Planet”, at the following link: DiscoverMagazine.com – August 2002.
Discussion Questions:
lAnswer one of the following questions and be sure to indicate which question you chose in your response: What evidence supports a uranium core? Is the Moon cold or does it also have a hot interior? What evidence suggests that the Moon’s interior is partly molten? Might the Moon also have a core of uranium? Jupiter and some of the other Jovian planets radiate into space twice as much energy as they receive from the sun. What in the planets’ interiors might cause this? How do meteorites contribute to this argument? How do Hawaiian basalts contribute to this argument?
2. What is the traditional explanation for your answer provided in Question 1? Please use the course content or search online (make sure to reference your sources) to come to an answer. 3. Which explanation do you find more compelling? Why? 4. How do scientists decide between competing hypotheses? How should scientists respond to hypotheses that counter current scientific thought?