Mantle (geology) might possibly be exposed in the South Pole-Aitken basin and/or the Crisium basin. The lunar mantle contains a seismic discontinuity at ~500 km depth, most likely related to a change in composition. Titan and Triton each have a mantle made of ice or other solid volatile substances. Some of the largest asteroids have mantles; for example, Vesta has a silicate mantle similar in composition to diogenite meteorites. Mantle (geology) The mantle is a layer inside a planetary body bounded below by a core and above by a crust. Mantles are made of rock or ices, and are generally the largest
Age of the Earth Earth is difficult to determine. It is also difficult to determine the exact age of the oldest rocks on Earth, exposed at the surface, as they are aggregates of minerals of possibly different ages. Studies of strata, the layering of rocks and earth, gave naturalists an appreciation that Earth may have been through many changes during its existence. These layers often contained fossilized remains of unknown creatures, leading some to interpret a progression of organisms from layer to layer. Nicolas Steno in the 17th century was one of the first naturalists to appreciate the connection between fossil remains and strata.