Name: Teresa
Status: Student
Grade: 6-8
Location: CA
Country: United States
Date: October 2008
Question:
Why are caverns so cold if the earths crust is hot?
Replies:
Teresa,
Think of it this way: While the core of the Earth is indeed hot, there are
also miles of rock between the hot core and the Earth's surface. This forms
an insulating barrier between us and the core (much like a jacket keeps your
heat from escaping out into the cold environment). We only experience the heat
of the inner core during volcano eruptions when the hot matter gets past the
insulating rock.
So, what keeps us warm is not the core, but the Sun. In this sense the more
insulated we are from the Sun, the colder it feels - just like on a cloudy day
when the Sun is insulated by the clouds, or as in your question- when there are
rocks in between you and the Sun.
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