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The mantle is divided into an upper and lower mantle. The mantle is much denser than crust material, and exists in a very dense molten soup that is compressed nearly solid by the intense pressure, similar to flowing stone that is also solid. There are convection currents that flow in this mixture that help move tectonic plates, and hotspots in the mantle that form calderas such as Yellowstone, which appear to move across the plate. In reality these hotspots are stationary, and the plate slides across the top, moving the caldera slowly across the plate.

In the mantle, look for high amounts of mafic rock. In general, however, the local mineral distribution depends on where you are at. Near a subduction zone, there will be more felsic material, but at a divergent plate boundary, you will find very heavy mafic minerals.

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14y ago

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