Editing Earth's outer core (section)

===== Accretion =====
[[File:Earth_formation.jpg|alt=An artist's illustration of what Earth might have looked like early in its formation. In this image, the Earth looks molten, with red gaps of lava separating with jagged and seemingly-cooled plates of material.|thumb|An artist's illustration of what Earth might have looked like early in its formation.]]

The variety of light elements present in Earth's outer core is constrained in part by [[accretion (astrophysics)|Earth's accretion]].<ref name=":4" /> Namely, the light elements contained must have been abundant during Earth's formation, must be able to partition into [[liquid]] iron at low [[pressure]]s, and must not volatilize and escape during Earth's accretionary process.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":4" />