Comments on: Nuclear Decay Beneath Your Feet Accounts for Half of Earth’s Heat Output

By: Matt B.

Matt B. — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 03:13:15 +0000

When you say “A proton can sometimes capture an antineutrino, which then splits into a neutron plus a positron”, the word “which” has to refer to “antineutrino”, not “proton”. So you’re telling us that a chargeless antineutrino splits into a chargeless neutron and a charged positron, both of which have much greater masses than an antineutrino.

By: andras

andras — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 01:14:25 +0000

Does’nt anybody remember the article about the Nuclear scientist Marvin Herndon, He said his research shows that we have a 5 mile ball of uranium at the center , and it is in fusion, That’s what fuels the molten lava. to me its the only thing that makes sense, (After 4 billion years, everything else has cooled off) he finds the isotopes that he predicted , when he proposed the theory… Look him up! Andras Schoffer

By: Bob

Bob — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 14:46:55 +0000

Most of the remainder of the heat process is caused by the US Congress. So don’t be alarmed if we burn. I know this is anacdotal, but I couldn’t resist.

By: Mladen

Mladen — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 10:03:28 +0000

So, how much heat is generated by tidal forces?

By: rob

rob — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 04:12:42 +0000

The moon is my choice for the rest of the heat. the moon doesn’t get enough credit for what it is .our sister planet. if mars had a moon as large as ours it would probably still be geologically active and even have a magnetic field and an atmosphere.

By: Patrick

Patrick — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 18:26:02 +0000

Uh, tidal forces, uh lingering kinetic energy from impacts…?? Just where did that moon come from?

By: Duncan

Duncan — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 15:57:42 +0000

and don’t forget daniel, 80% of the heat emanating from the west coast is from bong hits. it all adds up.
lol

By: daniel I.

daniel I. — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 06:41:42 +0000

Clearly some of the other heat comes from the dwarven forges under the surface. They are busy mass producing axes so that one day they will be able to take over the surface.
The heat that doesn’t come from radioactive decay and the dwarves is most likely to be from dragon fire. Everyone who knows it knows that the dragons moved underground long ago to escape human-caused extinction. Duh!

By: Roland

Roland — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 22:08:28 +0000

The earth aborbs a tremdous amount of heat from the sun. How much of that heat is stored; how much re-generated over time by plants and animals, elements, compounds, chemical reactions, etc.? Can this be calculated?

By: Paul

Paul — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 15:27:32 +0000

John: you’re right, it can’t be primordial. That heat left town long ago.

So maybe there’s some new physics here. From dark matter, perhaps?

By: John Lerch

John Lerch — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 15:10:19 +0000

How can the rest be primordial heat? Before radioactivity was discovered, that was the only possibility and that gave an age of the earth of 20 million years. IOW–IT AIN”T MUCH.
How about the manufacture of exotic isotopes under the intense pressure which then decay with a net output of energy? The most likely candidate would be enhanced electron capture.
Re heat of crystallization: That would come under the heading of primordial heat; it could explain some of the present heat. You would then have to explain why on the average the heat lost seems to be constant in geological time.

By: Georg

Georg — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 13:21:28 +0000

What abot the heat of crystallisation of the innermost solid iron core from the
surrounding melt?

Are there some realistic figures of that heat at the temperatures/pressure “downunder”?
Georg