EARTH SCIENCE

EARTH SCIENCE Earth Science is concerned with the entire earth the lithosphere, the hydrosphere, and the atmosphere. It comprises sciences like Geology, Meteorology, Astronomy, Oceanography, and Mathematics. Thus, the study of Earth Science shall not be limited to the earth alone but also includes its interrelationship with other scienceAstronomy is the study of all matter and energy in the universe involving celestial bodies such as planets, stars, and galaxies. The Earth, our home, is one of the many places in the universe, the special point from which mans voyage of exploration started.One of the oldest sciences Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects The border between terrestrial and extraterrestrial space = upper end of Earths atmosphere Astronomy interferes with physical and technical sciences The Goals and Scope of AstronomyThe aim of astronomy is better understanding of the universe. The astronomer attempts to attain this by careful observation, testing and logic. At present, astronomy has little opportunity to see its knowledge used for the material benefit of mankind. Perhaps, the biggest benefit astronomy gives to mankind is celestial navigation, which up to now is very useful method of locating oneself whether on the seas, on land, or in outer space.The scope of astronomy is so vast. It is the scientific study of all matter and energy in the universe emphasizing the concentration of this matter and energy in evolving bodies like planets, stars, and galaxies, totally recognizing and understanding that we are part of the universe.The field is so complicated and it takes a long way to understand everything in the universe. The universe is everything that exists. It is composed of untold thousands of clusters of galaxies and each one is still largely a myth.Most galaxies are made up of billions of stars and even if our knowledge has been increased over the past years, no star has been completely understood. Planets remain as intriguing puzzle. We only have vague evidence regarding the existence of small dark objects between stars. For our own planet, our knowledge covers only the parts near and above the surface which is therefore only skin-deep.Man Benefits in Astronomy in many forms:through a new perspective of his environmentA view of himself and his environmentThe stimulation to his imagination brought about by the adventure of exploring far distant space and time.Astronomy accelerated development of mathematics and physics.Cosmic research brought new technologies to common life.Disadvantages of Astronomy Most of directly visible events are already well explored and visible during night (human is active thought day) Based on mathematics and physics (difficult, maybe non-interesting) Subject of research is extraterrestrial less necessary + exacting on money Astronomers are usually not good at communication Light pollution of the night sky Consequence: badly known, not appreciated but future of mankind lies in the universe!Theories About the Origin of the Solar SystemThere have been two main views regarding the origin of the planets in our solar system. The first is that another star happened to pass near our sun, and drew off clouds of gases which then formed themselves into planets. This is the planetesimal group of theories. Astronomers are well aware of the fact that stars do not wander around through space, but that is how the theory went..e other main viewpoint is that a swirling cloud of gas formed itself into our sun, planets, moons, comets, and asteroids. By 1940, all the various encounter or planetesimal theories had pretty much been discarded as hopeless, but, beginning in that decade, under the urging of *von Weizsacker, *Whipple, *Spitzer, *Urey, *Garnow, *Hoyle, *Kuiper, and others, an attempt has been made to bring astronomers back to some variation of the nebular (gas cloud) hypothesis. Their efforts have been surprisingly successful, in spite of the obvious physical principle that gas in outer space (as well as here on earth) never coagulates; it always spreads outward.The planets in our solar system are thought to have evolved Into existence in one of seven ways:(1)NEBULAR HYPOTHESISFor many years the nebular hypothesis was a leading theory. According to it, the sun and its planets supposedly condensed out of swirling eddies of cold, dark, interstellar clouds of gas and dust.But there are serious problems to the concept:[1] Before any condensation of gas and dust could occur, the nebula would have diffused into outer space. According to *Gerald P. Kuiper, a leading evolutionary astronomer, before gravitational attraction would become significant, the particles would have to be as big as the moon.[2] The theory requires that a complex system of roller-bearing eddies of gas and dust had to develop, which in turn gradually whirled out into sun and planets and moons. But this is an impossibility, since such vortices would have to remain perfectly intact during essentially the entire period of planetary formation. On this point, Kuiper doubted that the vortices could last long enough to get the condensation building process of the planets underway.[3] What stopped the entire process?If it were not stopped, the entire mass of material would form one large bodywithout any planets and moons.[4] Since the sun has 99.5 percent of the mass in the solar system, and all the planets and moons only have 0.5 percent of it, what would have kept these small bodies from falling into the main body?[5]There is much interstellar material in the vicinity of our sun, but it is not condensing.

6] Our sun has an extremely small rotational motionthat is, it is turning slowly. This "angular momentum" is far too small to have evolved from a gas cloud.If our sun came from a gaseous protogalaxy, its angular momentum would have to have been a billion times as much as it is now, in order for our planets to be flung out and orbit it as fast as they do. How could it have lost all of its rotational motion?2) FISSION THEORYThe "fission theory" says that our sun burst one day, and all our planets came from it. Then the moons shot out from each planet, stopped, turned sideways and began circling the planets they came out of. Our moon is said to have emerged from an explosion in the Pacific Ocean.There are several problems to this theory:[1] While the moon was moving outward from the earth, gravity would have pulverized it into rings.[2] Moon rocks are somewhat different in composition than the material on earth.[3] Immense outward explosions would hurl material straight out into space; they would not circle and then form carefully balanced orbits.[4] If thrown off by the earth, the moon should circle our world over the equator, but, instead of this, it orbits our planet at a tilt of 18-28 to the earth's equator.3) CAPTURE THEORYThe "capture theory" says that our planets and moons were wandering around in spaceand the planets were captured by the gravity of our sun, and the moons were captured by the planets.But there are serious problems here also:[1] The mathematical probabilities are extremely low. Given the great distances between objects in space, the likelihood that objects would pass so close to one another is very little. Millions would have to pass near the sun or planets in order for one to pass closely enough.2]We see no planets flying by us today! If it was occurring earlier, it should be happening with great regularity now. We have enough telescopes in place that we could easily observe such giant rocks whizzing through our solar system. They would be brilliant as they shot by, and many could easily be seen with the unaided eye.[3] If they did pass near enough, gravity would crash into planets and suns, or they would merely fly past us; they would not pause and begin orbiting within our solar system.

[4]By mathematical probabilities, it would take thousands of moons passing near the earth in order for one to possibly begin circling it. In the process, gravity would have brought many of them crashing into the earth, destroying both!These solar system evolution theories appear to be little more than fables packaged in big words.

4) ACCRETION THEORYThe "accretion, condensation, nebular contraction," or "dust cloud" theory says that small chunks of material separately formed themselves into our earth and the moon."According to this idea, a dust cloud began to rotate. . When the mass had swept up most of the material in an eddy, a planet was formed."*M. Bishop, *B. Sutherland, and *P. Lewis, Focus on Earth Science (1981), p. 470.

It is said that the moon is just a pile of dust, and "just happened" to wander near and begin circling our world, another "pile of dust."But two huge spheresearth and moonso close to each other, would fly apart or, being so close to each other, would soon crash. They would not endlessly circle one another, neither colliding nor separating.(5) PLANETARY COLLISION THEORYThe "collision theory" of the origin our moon theorizes thatour world is said to have collided with a small planet. The resulting explosion threw off rocks which formed our orbiting moon.Again there are problems:[1]Such a giant impact would totally destroy our planetor melt its crust.2] The mathematical probabilities of another large object hurtling near our planetand then striking it are remotely "possible."But the fantastically slight probabilities that it could hit our planet with just the right weight, speed, and angle of hit to produce an orbiting of the moon around our earth, make the whole process an impossibility.3]But more: This would have had to happen repeatedlyagain and againfor all the other moons in our solar system!(At the present time 60 moons in our solar system have been counted; the 1989 Neptune flyby added 6 more to the total.)[4]With 60 moons to form, tens of thousands of moons would have to pass by our nine planets In order for their five dozen moons to begin orbiting them! In the process, thousands of collisions would have occurred, destroying everything!

[5] If so many near collisions of giant spheres are necessary in order for moons to form, why are not such near collisions regularly occurring today? Why are not moons regularly passing us now? In order to agree with the probabilities (mathematical likelihood) that it could occur, several dozen moons would have to fly through our solar system every day nowand for billions of years beforehandin order for 60 moons to accidentally start circling our nine planets through close fly-bys. Of course, that many wandering spheres entering our solar system would cause havocand the resulting collisions would smash both planets and moons and hurtle the pieces into the sun.6) STELLAR COLLISION THEORYThe "collision theory" of the origin of our entire solar system suggests that our planets, moons, and sun all spun off from a collision between stars. As with most of the other theories, the problems here are:1]A collision hurls materials outward. The debris would continually travel outward forever.[2] If any pieces were drawn together by gravity, they would have smashed into each other; they would not mutually orbit.

7)GAS CLOUD THEORYThe "gas cloud theory" of our planets and moons teachesthat gas clouds were captured by our sun, which then mysteriously formed themselves at a distance into planets and moons.]We have already observed that gas does not lump together, any more than air clumps together into solids.2] If these planets and moons did adhere in that manner, they would not orbit one another, nor would they all together circle the sun.According to the theory, gas formed into dust grains, and these glued together somehow and built up into fist-sized chunks. These pieces continued to grow until they became planets and moons. But, as mentioned in the previous chapter,*Harwit calculated that it would be impossible for the gas and dust to stick together in outer space, and before any condensation of gas and dust could occur, it all would separate.SEVEN MORE FLAWS IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM THEORIESThere are several other weaknesses in these theories of the originofour solar system. Here are some ofthem:(1) They do not explain where stars, planets and moons originated.

2) They assume that the very precise and complicated orbits in our solar system came about by chance. Yet that could never happen. Man-made satellites eventually fall back to earth. All the moons should fall into their respective planets, and the planets should also fall into the sun.. Yet that could never happen. Man-made satellites eventually fall back to earth. All the moons should fall into their respective planets, and the planets should also fall into the sun.3) To the extent to which we have studied them, each planet and moon in our solar system has unique structures and properties.How could each one be different if all of them came from the sun or a common stellar collision?How could each one be different if all of them came from the sun or a common stellar collision? How could each one be different if all of them came from the sun or a common stellar collision?4) None of these theories fit into the laws of physics, as we know them.(5) Nowhere in the universe is to be found evidence of a building process, such as is depicted in these fanciful theories. Within the time span of mankind no such evolutionary changes as those taught by astronomical theorists has occurred. How can we assume they take place! This imaginative thinking is not science, but fiction writing.

) Evolutionary theorists cannot come up with a rational explanation of theintricate balancing and orbital motions of moons and planets in our solar system!As mentioned earlier, Everything should crash together or fly apart.

(7) Hydrogen gas never "gravitates" into solidsanywhere, either on the earth or in outer space. Scientists now know that neither gas nor dust particles can push themselves into small or large solids. There is no known mechanism by which small particles of gas could stick together to build up chunks big enough, which would finally attract each other gravitationally, and form planets. There is no known mechanism by which dust particles in outer space could do it either.