Earth’s mantle is the region which begins just below the thin crust on which we live, and extends some 2,900 km (1,800 miles) down all the way to the outer liquid core. Making up around 70% of the Earth’s volume, the mantle, while made of solid rock, can gradually flow in a plastic fashion. Slow convection in the mantle is what drives plate tectonics in the Earth’s crust. Temperatures in the mantle range from 500ºC (932ºF) at the crustal boundary to over 4,000ºC (7,232ºF) at the boundary with the outer liquid core.