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Geophysics
Evidence presented for potassium as missing heat source in planetary cores
June 2nd, 2003
There's a small problem with Earth's magnetic field: it should not have existed, as Earth's rock record indicates it has, for the past 3.5 billion years. Motions in the Earth's molten iron core generate convection currents - similar to boiling water - which produce the field. Many sources of heat drive these currents, but the known sources seem inadequate to maintain the field this long. In 1971, University of Minnesota geology and geophysics professor Rama Murthy theorized that radioactive potassium in the core could supply additional heat, but researchers investigating that claim have been unable to obtain reliable experimental data. In a paper published in the May 8,...
Source: Science Letter (2003-06-02)
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