Mantle convection is the very slow creeping motion of Earth's solid silicate mantle as convection currents carry heat from the interior to the planet's surface. Convection currents are caused by density differences, which in turn are caused by temperature differences. Hot air and water are less dense than cold air and water, and so the warmer substance rises.

Convection currents are the result of differential heating. Lighter, warm material rises while heavier cool material sinks. It is this movement that creates circulation patterns known as convection currents in the atmosphere, in water, and in the mantle of Earth.Patterns of surface currents are determined by wind direction, Coriolis forces from the Earth's rotation, and the position of landforms that interact with the currents. Three factors contribute to set convection currents in motion: heating and cooling of the fluid, changes in the fluid's density, and force of gravity. Note: Convection currents are responsible for the movement of the tectonic plates that make up the earth's crust, not the entire planet.Convection, process by which heat is transferred by movement of a heated fluid such as air or water. Natural convection results from the tendency of most fluids to expand when heated i.e., to become less dense and to rise as a result of the increased buoyancy. When the mantle convects, heat is transferred through the mantle by physically moving hot rocks. Mantle convection is the result of heat transfer from the core to the base of the lower mantle. Convection currents drive the movement of Earth's rigid tectonic plates in the planet's fluid molten mantle. In places where convection currents rise up towards the crust's surface, tectonic plates move away from each other in a process known as seafloor spreading. onvection currents within Earth's mantle form as material near the core heats up. As the core heats the bottom layer of mantle material, particles move more rapidly, decreasing its density and causing it to rise. The rising material begins the convection current. Earth's core acts like a storage heater, with heat released during crystallization of the inner core that buffers the slow cooling of the planet as it radiates its heat to space. The most obvious expression of this heat transfer is Earth's magnetic field, which is generated by convection in the liquid outer core.

Conduction directly affects air temperature only a few centimeters into the atmosphere. During the day, sunlight heats the ground, which in turn heats the air directly above it via conduction. At night, the ground cools and the heat flows from the warmer air directly above to the cooler ground via conduction. The main heat transfer mechanism in the Earth's mantle is convection, a thermally driven process where heating at depth causes material to expand and become less dense, causing it to rise while being replaced by complimentary cool material that sinks. Convection currents within Earth's mantle form as material near the core heats up. As the core heats the bottom layer of mantle material, particles move more rapidly, decreasing its density and causing it to rise. The rising material begins the convection current. Mantle convection is the very slow creeping motion of Earth's solid silicate mantle as convection currents carry heat from the interior to the planet's surface. Convection currents drive the movement of Earth's rigid tectonic plates in the planet's fluid molten mantle. In places where convection currents rise up towards the crust's surface, tectonic plates move away from each other in a process known as seafloor spreading. Convection currents on Earth occur in the mantle of the Earth. They are caused by the rise of hot magma towards the Earth's crust, becoming cooler, and then sinking back down. Heat rising and falling inside the mantle creates convection currents generated by radioactive decay in the Earth's core. The convection currents move the plates that make up the crust along the Earth's surface. Exactly how this works is still a matter of debate. The movement of these tectonic plates is likely caused by convection currents in the molten rock in Earth's mantle below the crust. Earthquakes and volcanoes are the short-term results of this tectonic movement. The long-term result of plate tectonics is the movement of entire continents over millions of years