EARTH & LIFE SCIENCE

I. UNIVERSE AND SOLAR SYSTEM

Definition of terms:
 Cosmos - The cosmos is an alternative name for the universe or its nature or order. Usage of the word
cosmos implies viewing the universe as a complex and orderly system or entity.
 Heavenly body (celestial body) - is an aggregation of matter in the universe (such as a planet, star, or
nebula) that can be considered as a single unit (as for astronomical study).
 Earth - Earth is the planet we live on, the third of eight planets in our solar system and the only known
place in the universe to support life.
 Nebula - any of the various clouds of gas and dust that occur in interstellar space. The closest known
nebula to Earth is called the Helix Nebula. It is the remnant of a dying star—possibly one like the sun.
 Planet - A planet is a large object that orbits a star.
 Interstellar space – the space between the stars.
 Light-year - A light-year is the distance light travels in one Earth year. One light-year is about 6 trillion
miles (9 trillion km). Light travels at a speed of 186,000 miles (or 300,000 km) per second. The next
closest star to us is about 4.3 light-years away. So, when we see this star today, we’re actually seeing it
as it was 4.3 years ago.
 Star - any massive self-luminous celestial body of gas that shines by radiation derived from its internal
energy sources. Our sun is the closest star to us. It is about 93 million miles away. The sun's light takes
about 8.3 minutes to reach us. This means that we always see the sun as it was about 8.3 minutes ago.
 Galaxy - any of the systems of stars and interstellar matter that make up the universe. Many such
assemblages are so enormous that they contain hundreds of billions of stars. Andromeda, the nearest
large spiral galaxy, is one of the few visible to the unaided eye, appearing as a milky blur. In 2016,
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope looked at the farthest galaxy ever seen, called GN-z11. It is 13.4
billion light-years away, so today we can see it as it was 13.4 billion years ago. That is only 400 million
years after the big bang. It is one of the first galaxies ever formed in the universe.
FAST FACT: In 2016, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope looked at the farthest galaxy ever seen, called GN-
z11. It is 13.4 billion light-years away, so today we can see it as it was 13.4 billion years ago. That is only 400
million years after the big bang. It is one of the first galaxies ever formed in the universe.

A. Formation of the earth and the solar system

In the vast expanse of the cosmos, our home, Earth, emerges as a remarkable celestial body, bearing
the signature of a complex and awe-inspiring birth. From the swirling clouds of stardust to the molten
chaos of its early days, Earth’s formation is a captivating story that beckons us to explore the origins
of our world. Understanding the intricacies of how our planet came into being is not merely a matter of
scientific curiosity; it holds the key to unraveling the mysteries of life, geology, and even the fate of
humanity. In this journey of discovery, we will dive into the formation of Earth, the cradle of life as we
know it, uncovering the profound significance of this ancient tale for our present and future. Therefore,
through the prism of Earth’s formation, we will gain insights into the fundamental processes that have
shaped our planet and continue to influence our existence today.
1. Hypotheses explaining the origin of the universe:
a. The Greek philosopher Plato argued that the heavens were perfect. Because the only perfect geometrical
shape is a sphere, which carries a point on its surface around in a circle, and because the only perfect motion
is uniform motion, Plato concluded that all motion in the heavens must be made up of combinations of circles
turning at uniform rates. The idea was called uniform circular motion.
b. Plato’s student, Aristotle, argued that the Earth was imperfect and lay at the center of the universe. Such
model is known as a geocentric universe.
c. The Gaseous Hypothesis of Kant
Immanuel Kant, a German philosopher, proposed his own theory regarding the origin of the earth in 1755,
which was based on Newton's law of [Link] believed that the original substance was initially distributed
and was made up of cold, unmoving, solid [Link] clashed with each other because of gravity, which
produced heat, which induced angular momentum, and it began to rotate. Later, it evolved into a hot nebula
that began rotating, causing the speed to progressively [Link] rotation resulted in a strong centrifugal
force, which produced rings of matter, which cooled to become planets and satellites.
According to the widely accepted nebular hypothesis, the earth formed from a massive cloud made primarily of
hydrogen and [Link], rotation, and lowering temperatures resulted in the formation of small
particles. After tens of millions of years of condensation and accretion, these started to clump together, and the
earth was created about 4.5 billion years ago.
d. Nebular Hypothesis of Laplace
Kant's theory was revised in 1976 by mathematician Pierre-Simon [Link] to the nebular
hypothesis, the sun was encircled by a solar nebula made up primarily of hydrogen and helium, as well as
[Link] development of a disk-shaped cloud is caused by particle impact and [Link] were formed
from material associated with the young sun because of the accretion process.
e. Binary Theory or Planetesimal Hypothesis of Chamberlain
In 1900, Chamberlain and Moulton gave this [Link] to this theory, another wandering star
approached the [Link] a result, the material's cigar-shaped extension from the solar surface was
[Link] sun with its very high-temperature projects hot material called the [Link] particles of
this material got coalesced to form the planets. A lot of heat was generated in the [Link] material
slowly condensed into a planet as the passing star moved away, and the sun continued to spin.
f. Jeans and Jeffreys’ Tidal Theory

James Jeans and Harold Jeffreys were both scientists from the United Kingdom. To explain the formation of
Earth and our solar system, they proposed the "Jeans and Jeffreys’ Tidal Hypothesis."
The gravitational force of two stars has resulted in the formation of our solar system.
Primitive Sun: The primitive sun is the early stage of the sun.
Intruding Star: In comparison to the primitive sun, it was much larger.
When the intruding star passed close enough to the primitive sun, hot gas tides rose on [Link]-shaped hot
gaseous particles were separated from the primordial sun when the intruding star was closest to it across the
entire traveled distance. Jeans and Jeffreys refer to the filament as [Link] the filament's
central sectors were bulgy and had more gas material, bigger planets like Jupiter and Saturn were [Link]
both sides of the filament, smaller planets were produced.
Criticism of Jeans and Jeffreys’ Tidal Theory
 Our solar system's planets are made up of heavier atomic material, but if the planets' material is carved
from the sun, it should be made up of lighter atomic material like helium and hydrogen.
 The process and mechanism of condensation were not explained.
 In the universe, stars are so far apart that there are few chances of intruding stars.
g. Hoyle's Supernova Hypothesis
In 1946, Fred Hoyle proposed this [Link] sun used to be twinned with another star, which burst due to
nuclear processes that transformed lighter components into heavier [Link] companion star's explosion
produced a cloud of incandescent gases, which he refers to as the "Supernova stage.”
As the nucleus receded far away, the sun's gravitational power kept this gaseous cloud and the rest of the star
[Link] gaseous cloud at the supernova stage contains iron and other earth [Link] earth, as well
as other planets and satellites, were formed from these [Link] revolved around the sun because they
were in the sun's gravitational field, and gradually cooled to the solid form in which the planets and satellites
exist today.
h. Schmidt's Interstellar Hypothesis
According to this theory, the primordial dust began to coalesce into a disk-shaped configuration as it moved at
a high [Link] disk-shaped nebulae were further subdivided into rings, each holding asteroids that
eventually merged into planets.
Criticism of Schmidt's Interstellar Hypothesis
Schmidt did not go into detail about how these mysterious substances came to be. Schmidt dubbed these
black particles "interstellar dust.”
i. The Big Bang Theory
After Edwin Hubble proposed the constant expansion of the universe, another Belgian cosmologist came up
with the Big Bang Theory in 1931.
According to the Big Bang Theory, all the matter that made up the universe resided in a single location with a
volume smaller than an atom, an unlimited temperature, and an infinite density.
The theory suggests that the universe, at some point in time, was condensed into a single particle and later
started expanding infinitely after a huge explosion.
The expansion later gave birth to nebulae that in turn, coalesced into stars and planets.
The science community unanimously agrees over the age of the universe to be around 13.8 billion years.
2. Famous astronomers: How these scientists shaped astronomy
ERATOSTHENES OF CYRENE
His measurement of 24,660 miles (39,690 kilometers) was only 211 miles (340 km) off the true measurement.
When most people believed the world was flat, the notable Greek mathematician, astronomer, and geographer
Eratosthenes (276–195 B.C.) used the sun to measure the size of the round Earth, according to NASA.
CLAUDIUS PTOLEMY
In ancient Greece, astronomer, and mathematician Claudius Ptolemy (A.D. 90–168) set up a model of the solar
system in which the sun, stars, and other planets revolved around Earth. Known as the Ptolemaic system, it
remained in place for hundreds of years, though it turned out to be flat wrong.
According to NASA, "Ptolemy represents the epitome of knowledge of Grecian astronomy." As a
mathematician, geographer, and astronomer, he authored several scientific texts which had considerable
impact on Western intellectual thought.
In the 2nd century, Ptolemy published the Almagest, a comprehensive treatise on the movements of the stars
and planets. It expanded Hipparchus’ geometric model of celestial motions, utilizing epicycles and eccentric
circles in a geocentric theory which placed the Earth at the center of the solar system. This Ptolemaic system
presented tables of information allowing convenient predictions of planetary locations. Ptolemy also catalogued
48 constellations, the names of which are still in use at present.
ABD AL-RAHMAN AL-SUFI
Persian astronomer Abd al-Rahman al-Sufi (903–986), known as Azophi to Westerners, made the first known
observation of a group of stars outside of the Milky Way, the Andromeda galaxy.
NICOLAUS COPERNICUS – FATHER OF MODERN ASTRONOMY
In 16th century Poland, astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus (1473–1543) proposed a model of the solar system
that involved the Earth revolving around the sun, according to NASA. The model was not completely correct,
as astronomers of the time struggled with the backwards path Mars sometimes took, but it eventually changed
the way many scientists viewed the solar system.
Copernicusfelt the Ptolemaic view of the planets traveling in circular orbits around the Earth was over-
complicated with many smaller circles, epicycles, needed to explain the intermittent retrograde motion of the
planets (in which they appear to move in the opposite direction of the stars). Copernicus published his book,
De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium ("On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres") when he was 70 and
lay dying.
JOHANNES KEPLER
Using detailed measurements of the path of planets kept by Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe, Johannes Kepler
(1571–1630) determined that planets traveled around the sun not in circles, as Copernicus had thought, but in
ellipses. In so doing, he calculated three laws involving the motions of planets that astronomers still use in
calculations today. However, closed minds put Kepler's work at risk.
Kepler defended and modified the Copernican view of the solar system with a radical reformation that
established him as one of the great lights of the Scientific Revolution of the 16th-17th centuries.
GALILEO GALILEI
Born in Italy, Galileo Galilei (1564–1642) is often credited with the creation of the optical telescope, though in
truth he improved on existing models.
According to the Rice University's Galileo Project, "Galileo made his first telescope in 1609, modeled after
telescopes produced in other parts of Europe that could magnify objects three times. He created a telescope
later that same year that could magnify objects twenty times."
The astronomer (also mathematician, physicist, and philosopher) turned the new observational tool toward the
heavens, where he discovered the four primary moons of Jupiter (now known as the Galilean moons), as well
as the rings of Saturn.
Though a model of the Earth circling the sun was first proposed by Copernicus, it took some time before it
became widely accepted. Galileo is most widely known for defending the idea several years after Kepler had
already calculated the path of planets, and Galileo wound up under house arrest at the end of his lifetime
because of it.
CHRISTIAAN HUYGENS
Dutch scientist Christiaan Huygens (1629–1695) proposed the earliest theory about the nature of light, a
phenomenon that puzzled scientists for hundreds of years. His improvements on the telescope allowed him to
make the first observations of Saturn's rings and to discover its largest moon, Titan.
Developing improved telescopes, Huygens was able to make several important astronomical discoveries. It
was in 1655 that he proposed that a thin, flat ring circled Saturn. His discovery of Titan marked the first moon
spotted around the planet. He made the first known drawing of the Orion Nebula.
ISAAC NEWTON
English astronomer Sir Isaac Newton (1643–1727) is most famous for his work on forces, specifically gravity.
Building on the work of those who had gone before him — he is quoted as saying, "If I have seen further, it is
by standing upon the shoulders of giants" — he calculated three laws describing the motion of forces between
objects, known today as Newton's laws.
EDMOND HALLEY
Edmond Halley (1656–1742) was the British scientist who reviewed historical comet sightings and proposed
that the comet that had appeared in 1456, 1531, 1607, and 1682 were all the same, and would return in 1758.
Although he died before its return, he was proven correct, and the comet was named in his honor.
EDWIN POWELL HUBBLE
Edwin Hubble, for whom the Hubble Space Telescope is named, was one of the leading astronomers of the
twentieth century. His discovery in the 1920s that countless galaxies exist beyond our own Milky Way galaxy
revolutionized our understanding of the universe and our place within it.
He revolutionized the field of astrophysics. His research helped prove that the universe is expanding, and he
created a classification system for galaxies that has been used for several decades.
The Hubble Space Telescope has given humanity an aperture to the universe for more than three decades. Its
discoveries have fundamentally enhanced our understanding of the cosmos. Like the Hubble Space
Telescope, Edwin Hubble’s discoveries transformed the frontier of scientific knowledge. His work took us
beyond the Milky Way and placed us in an ever-expanding universe with a myriad of galaxies beyond our own.
II. EARTH – THE CRADLE OF LIFE AS WE KNOW IT
Earth is the planet we live on, the third of eight planets in our solar system and the only known place in the
universe to support life.
Earth is the third planet from the sun, after Mercury and Venus, and before Mars. It is about 150 million
kilometers (about 93 million miles) from the sun. This distance, called an astronomical unit (AU), is a
standard unit of measurement in astronomy. Earth is one AU from the sun. The planet Jupiter is about 5.2 AU
from the sun—about 778 million kilometers (483.5 million miles).
Earth is the largest and most massive of the rocky inner planets, although it is dwarfed by the gas giants
beyond the Asteroid Belt. Its diameter is about 12,700 kilometers (7,900 miles), and its mass is about
5.97×1024 kilograms (6.58×1021 tons). In contrast, Jupiter, the largest planet in the solar system, has a
diameter of 143,000 kilometers (88,850 miles), and its mass is about 1,898×1024 kilograms (2093×1021 tons).
Earth is an oblate spheroid. This means it is spherical in shape, but not perfectly round. It has a slightly
greater radius at the Equator, the imaginary line running horizontally around the middle of the planet. In
addition to bulging in the middle, Earth’s poles are slightly flattened.
Earth has one natural satellite, the moon. Earth is the only planet in the solar system to have one moon. Venus
and Mercury do not have any moons, for example, while Jupiter and Saturn each have more than a dozen.
Revolution and Rotation
Earth is a rocky body constantly moving around the sun in a path called an orbit. Earth and the moon follow a
slightly oval-shaped orbit around the sun every year.
Each journey around the sun, a trip of about 940 million kilometers (584 million miles), is called a revolution. A
year on Earth is the time it takes to complete one revolution, about 365.25 days. Earth orbits the sun at a
speedy rate of about 30 kilometers per second (18.5 miles per second).
While it revolves around the sun, Earth rotates on its own axis. Rotation is when an object, such as a planet,
turns around an invisible line running down its center. Earth’s axis is vertical, running from the North Pole to the
South Pole. Earth makes one complete rotation about every 24 hours. Earth rotates unevenly, spinning faster
at the Equator than at the poles. At the Equator, Earth rotates at about 1,670 kilometers per hour (1,040 miles
per hour), while at 45° north, for example, (the approximate latitude of Green Bay, Wisconsin, United States)
Earth rotates at 1,180 kilometers per hour (733 miles per hour).
Earth’s axis of rotation is tilted 23.5°. This tilt influences temperature changes and other weather patterns from
season to season.
Formation of Earth
Earth and the rest of the solar system formed about 4.6 billion years ago from a huge, spinning cloud of gas
and dust.
Over a period of about 10 million years, the dense center of the cloud grew very hot. This massive center
became the sun. The rest of the particles and objects continued to revolve around the sun, colliding with each
other in clumps. Eventually, these clumps compressed into planets, asteroids, and moons. This process
generated a lot of heat.
Eventually, Earth began to cool and its materials began to separate. Lighter materials floated upward and
formed a thin crust. Heavier materials sank toward Earth’s center. Eventually, three main layers formed: the
core, the mantle, and the crust.
As Earth’s internal structure developed, gases released from the interior mixed, forming a thick, steamy
atmosphere around the planet. Water vapor condensed, and was augmented by water from asteroids and
comets that continued to crash to Earth. Rain began to fall and liquid water slowly filled basins in Earth’s crust,
forming a primitive ocean that covered most of the planet. Today, ocean waters continue to cover nearly three-
quarters of our planet.
The end of Earth will come with the end of the sun. In a few billion years, the sun will no longer be able to
sustain the nuclear reactions that keep its mass and luminosity consistent. First, the sun will lose more than a
quarter of its mass, which will loosen its gravitational hold on Earth. Earth’s orbit will widen to about 1.7 AU. But
the sun will also gain volume, expanding to about 250 times its current size. The sun in this red giant phase will
drag Earth into its own fiery atmosphere, destroying the planet.
Earth by the Numbers
Surface Gravity: 1 (one kilogram on Earth)
Orbital Period: 365.256 days
Satellites: 1 (the Moon)
Atmosphere: nitrogen (78%), oxygen (21%), argon, carbon dioxide, neon
Average Temperature: 15° Celsius (77 Kelvin, 59° Fahrenheit)
Ingredients for Life
Scientists have gathered enough information about other planets in our solar system to know that none can
support life as we know it. Life is not possible without a stable atmosphere containing the right chemical
ingredients for living organisms: hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon. These ingredients must be
balanced—not too thick or too thin. Life also depends on the presence of water.
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune all have atmospheres made mostly of hydrogen and helium. These
planets are called gas giants, because they are mostly made of gas and do not have a solid outer crust.
Mercury and Mars have some of the right ingredients, but their atmospheres are far too thin to support life. The
atmosphere of Venus is too thick—the planet's surface temperature is more than 460 degrees Celsius (860
degrees Fahrenheit).
Earth to Earth
Earth is the only planet in the solar system not named for a Greek or Roman deity. "Earth" originally meant the
soil and land of our planet. (This is still what it means when the word is lowercase.) Eventually, Earth came to
mean the planet itself.
Earth’s Interior
Earth’s interior is a complex structure of superheated rocks. Most geologists recognize three major layers: the
dense core, the bulky mantle, and the brittle crust. No one has ever ventured below Earth’s crust.
Earth’s core is mostly made of iron and nickel. It consists of a solid center surrounded by an outer layer of
liquid. The core is found about 2,900 kilometers (1,802 miles) below Earth’s surface, and has a radius of about
3,485 kilometers (2,165 miles).
A mantle of heavy rock (mostly silicates) surrounds the core. The mantle is about 2,900 kilometers (1,802
miles) thick, and makes up a whopping 84 percent of Earth’s total volume. Parts of the mantle are molten,
meaning they are composed of partly melted rock. The mantle’s molten rock is constantly in motion. It is forced
to the surface during volcanic eruptions and at mid-ocean ridges.
Earth’s crust is the planet’s thinnest layer, accounting for just one percent of Earth’s mass. There are two kinds
of crust: thin, dense oceanic crust and thick, less-dense continental crust. Oceanic crust extends about five to
10 kilometers (three to six miles) beneath the ocean floor. Continental crust is about 35 to 70 kilometers (22 to
44 miles) thick.
Earth’s Exterior: Tectonic Activity
The crust is covered by a series of constantly moving tectonic plates. New crust is created along mid-ocean
ridges and rift valleys, where plates pull apart from each other in a process called rifting. Plates slide above
and below each other in a process called subduction. They crash against each other in a process called
faulting.
Tectonic activity such as subduction and faulting has shaped the crust into a variety of landscapes. Earth’s
highest point is Mount Everest, Nepal, which soars 8,850 kilometers (29,035 feet) in the Himalaya Mountains in
Asia. Mount Everest continues to grow every year, as subduction drives the Indo-Australian tectonic plate
below the Eurasian tectonic plate. Subduction also creates Earth’s deepest point, the Mariana Trench, about
11 kilometers (6.9 miles) below the surface of the Pacific Ocean. The heavy Pacific plate is being subducted
beneath the small Mariana plate.
Plate tectonics are also responsible for landforms such as geysers, earthquakes, and volcanoes. Tectonic
activity around the Pacific plate, for instance, creates the Ring of Fire. This tectonically active area includes
volcanoes such as Mount Fuji, Japan, and earthquake-prone fault zones such as the west coast of the United
States.
The Ring of Fire
The Ring of Fire (also known as the Pacific Ring of Fire, the Rim of Fire, the Girdle of Fire, or the Circum-
Pacific belt) is a tectonic belt of volcanoes and [Link] is about 40,000 km (25,000 mi) long and up to
about 500 km (310 mi) wide, and surrounds most of the Pacific Ocean. It contains between 750 and 915 active
or dormant volcanoes, around two-thirds of the world total. The exact number of volcanoes within the Ring of
Fire depends on which regions are [Link] 90% of the world's earthquakes, including most of its
largest, occur within the belt.