Edgington, AL;
Vočadlo, L;
Stixrude, L;
Wood, IG;
Dobson, DP;
Holmström, E;
(2019)
The top-down crystallisation of Mercury's core.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters
, 528
, Article 115838. 10.1016/j.epsl.2019.115838.
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Abstract
The regime governing the growth of Mercury's core is unknown, but the dynamics of core growth are vital to understanding the origin and properties of the planet's weak magnetic field. Here, we use advanced first-principles methods, which include a magnetic entropy contribution, to investigate the magnetic and thermo-elastic properties of liquid Fe-S-Si and of pure liquid iron at the conditions of Mercury's core. Our results support a ‘top-down’ evolution of the core, whereby solid iron-rich material crystallises at shallow depths and sinks. This process would likely result in a compositionally driven dynamo within a stably stratified uppermost liquid layer, providing an explanation for the observed properties of the weak magnetic field of Mercury.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | The top-down crystallisation of Mercury's core |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.epsl.2019.115838 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2019.115838 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
| Keywords: | planetary science, Mercury, core evolution, planetary interiors, top-down crystallization, iron alloys |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences > Dept of Earth Sciences |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10082754 |
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