Page 98 - The Creation Of The Universe

96 THE CREATION OF THE UNIVERSE

ed and sunk to form the liquid core, and the magnetic field would nev-
er have developed…if there had been more radioactive fuel and a
faster running engine, volcanic gas and dust would have blotted out
the Sun, the atmosphere would have been oppressively dense, and the
surface would have been racked by daily earthquakes and volcanic ex-
plosions. 59
The magnetic field these geologists talk about is of great importance for
life. This magnetic field originates from the structure of Earth's core. The
core consists of heavy elements like iron and nickel that are capable of
holding a magnetic charge. The inner core is solid while the outer one is

At the center of the Earth there's a sort of heat-
driven engine that is so perfectly adjusted that it
Crust
is strong enough to generate the planet's magnet-
ic shield yet not so strong as to
engulf the crust above in
lava.

Magma (molten rock)

Iron-nickel
core