The Earth's core has been speculated to be molten. Scientists though are still not sure what actually happens inside the Earth. Satellites now can see through the Earth, and a jet stream is found in the Earth's core.
The Earth's core might not be as static as once believed. A satellite that could see through the Earth has revealed that the core is very much dynamic. The European Space Agency (ESA) has an instrument called Swarm satellites that can see through the Earth, as explained by lead researcher Dr. Phil Livermore from the University of Leeds.
The core is deep within the Earth. It is around 3,000 kilometers deep, and scientists for years cannot look into it directly. To study the core, scientists have to look into the Earth's magnetic field for clues about it.
Previously scientists have thought that the outer core has iron that is moving faster in some regions. This is through the study of the Earth's magnetic field. Now though, with the help of the Swarm satellites, it has been shown that this movement is actually caused by a band of molten iron that is moving at 40 kilometers per year.
The speed is actually quite fast. It is faster than the Earth's tectonic plates and even faster than the speed in the outer core, according to the University of Leeds' site. This jet stream is aligned between two boundaries within the core. The jet is said to be caused by liquid moving towards those boundaries.
The study has been made possible because of the three Swarm satellites looking at the magnetic signals coming from various points on the Earth. These signals come from the Earth's core, mantle, crust, oceans, ionosphere and magnetosphere, as Science Daily reports. The study is the most detailed yet about the Earth's core.
There could be more surprises in store for scientists, as speculated by Rune Floberghagen, Swarm's mission manager. He said that the magnetic field always experience changes, and this might also mean that the jet stream might change directions in the future. Study co-author Dr. Chris Finlay from the Technical University of Denmark has said that there is little knowledge about the core than about the Sun. That might change though as a jet stream is found in the Earth's core. Also scientists say that large planets will likely to have Neptune's mass.
