Mantle is defined as:

Mantle is defined as:

• A. The layer between the core and the crust
• B. The outermost layer of the Earth
• C. The inner core
• D. The surface

Answer: (B)

Mantle is the thick middle layer of the Earth, lying beneath the crust and above the core. It stretches from just beneath the surface down to about 2,900 kilometers (roughly 1,800 miles) below, and it includes both the upper mantle (which contains the partly molten asthenosphere) and the lower mantle, which is more rigid. The mantle is made of solid rocks that flow very slowly over geological time, driving convection currents that help move tectonic plates. The crust is the outermost solid shell, the core sits beneath the mantle (comprising a liquid outer core and a solid inner core), and the surface is simply the visible exterior of the crust. This placement—between the crust above and the core below—defines the mantle.

Mantle is the thick middle layer of the Earth, lying beneath the crust and above the core. It stretches from just beneath the surface down to about 2,900 kilometers (roughly 1,800 miles) below, and it includes both the upper mantle (which contains the partly molten asthenosphere) and the lower mantle, which is more rigid. The mantle is made of solid rocks that flow very slowly over geological time, driving convection currents that help move tectonic plates. The crust is the outermost solid shell, the core sits beneath the mantle (comprising a liquid outer core and a solid inner core), and the surface is simply the visible exterior of the crust. This placement—between the crust above and the core below—defines the mantle.