Plugged-in Planet: Accessing the Interior of the Earth and Other Terrestrial Bodies via Electrical Properties

Among the different methods used to probe the interior of planets and moons in the Solar System, the ones providing access to the electrical properties of rocks are particularly powerful. From field induction measurements to laboratory impedance spectroscopy experiments, several techniques explore the electrical response of geomaterials at different scales of observation, from planetary to atomic. Detailed snapshots of the Earth’s crust and mantle are obtained from the combination of magnetotelluric surveys with laboratory measurements. In space, induction observations complemented by electrical laboratory experiments have been key to defining the layered structure and thermal state of several terrestrial bodies. Future electrical investigations will continue to reveal the present structure of planetary deep interiors, which is necessary to decipher their evolution.