Structure of the Earth easily than does the upper mantle (chemical changes within the mantle may also be important). The viscosity of the mantle ranges between 10 and 10 Pa·s, depending on depth. In comparison, the viscosity of water is approximately 10 Pa·s and that of pitch is 10 Pa·s. The source of heat that drives plate tectonics is the primordial heat left over from the planet’s formation as well as the radioactive decay of uranium, thorium, and potassium in Earth’s crust and mantle. The average density of Earth is . Because the average density of surface material is only around , we must
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.