eli5 why metalls are located in veins and not equally distributed through the whole mass of the planet.
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Because the Earth isn’t just one solid lump of material. Instead it’s made up of layers. The inner and outer cores, where almost all metals are actually located because they are dense and so sank into the core eons ago. You then have the mantle which is rather runny and so moves around. You then lastly have what you’re used to which is a thin layer or solid crust. So there’s no way for it to be equally distributed.
As to why veins? Basically it’s where there’s a gap in the crust and it gets filled from below.
Depending on the rock or metal, they melt at different temperature so veins form when the liquid form permeates the cracks. Also, if both are in liquid form you also have to consider density. Less dense material will layer on top. Then on top of that, you have tectonic plates and volcanoes that will move material
They *are* distributed throughout the Earth’s crust, just not evenly. A vein is just a specific structure in a rock formation that contains some specific mineral embedded within the rock, and a vein is just one type of deposit from which you can obtain useful quantities of metals or other minerals.
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