Once a terrestrial planet had formed from a large number of planetesimals, heat could have melted it and allowed it to differentiate into a metallic core of ____________density and a rocky mantle or crust of ____________ density.
A)higher; lower
B)lower; higher
C)Wrong! The interior stays solid.
D)Wrong! There is no separation according to density.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

As the planetesimal accretion created a large enough mass to heat the planet, the interior became molten, allowing materials to separate by density. The denser metallic elements sunk towards the center, forming the core, and the lighter rocky materials rose towards the surface, forming the mantle and crust. Therefore, the metallic core would have a higher density, and the rocky mantle/crust would have a lower density.

Once a Terrestrial Planet Had Formed from a Large Number