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From: rmrin@inuxa.UUCP (D Rickert)
Newsgroups: net.misc
Subject: Earth's Internal Temperature
Message-ID: <274@inuxa.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 4-Apr-84 09:26:18 EST
Article-I.D.: inuxa.274
Posted: Wed Apr  4 09:26:18 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 5-Apr-84 00:49:12 EST
Organization: AT&T Consumer Products Div., Indianapolis
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While I don't have the numbers handy, I think the computation has been
run many times to show that the Earth's core is not hot because of
heat trapped at the time of this planet's formation.  In fact, some
theories state the matter for the Earth's formation was quite cool.
Ongoing decay of trapped radioactive matter is responsible for most
of the heat which shows up in places like Yellowstone and Hawaii.
Of course, the incoming solar energy is the main determinant of
surface temperatures and has a slight effect on core temperature
by influencing the heat leakage rate.