Most textbook diagrams color Earth’s mantle orange or red to symbolize extreme heat, but the actual dominant rock of the upper mantle is peridotite, a dense ultramafic rock rich in olivine and pyroxene minerals. Olivine contains iron and magnesium silicates that produce its characteristic lime green color. Mantle rocks rarely reach the surface naturally, but tectonic uplift and volcanic eruptions sometimes expose fragments called xenoliths, giving geologists direct evidence of Earth’s deep interior composition and chemistry. Post inspiration: Tumblr / palaeofail-explained MLA Source: “Peridotite.” Encyclopaedia Britannica, britannica.com/science/peridotite. Follow gravitonomy for more Science content. #science #geology #earth #peridotite #mantle