Final answer:
The liquid outer core of the scale model of Earth would be 4.6 inches thick, calculated using a scale of 1 inch to 500 kilometers and the actual thickness of the Earth's liquid outer core which is 2300 kilometers.
Step-by-step explanation:
To determine the thickness of the liquid outer core of a scale model of Earth with a scale of 1 inch to 500 kilometers, we start by noting the actual thickness of the Earth's liquid outer core is 2300 kilometers. We can set up a proportion to find the thickness on the model:
Actual thickness (in km) / Scale model thickness (in inches) = Actual size of Earth (in km) / Scale (in inches)
2300 km / x inches = 500 km / 1 inch
By cross-multiplying and solving for x, we have:
2300 km × 1 inch = 500 km × x inches
2300 = 500x
x = 2300 / 500
x = 4.6 inches
Therefore, the thickness of the liquid outer core on the model is 4.6 inches.