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earth

Is There a Protoplanet Inside the Earth?

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planet collision - pixabay

A protoplanet slammed into the Earth about 4.5 billion years ago, knocking loose a chunk of rock that would later become the moon. Now, scientists say that remnants of that protoplanet can still be found, lodged deep inside Earth, Science Magazine reported. If remains of the protoplanet, known as Theia, did stick around after the impact, that may explain why two continent-size blobs of hot rock now lie in the Earth’s mantle, one beneath Africa and the other under the Pacific Ocean. These massive blobs would stand about 100 times taller than Mount Everest, were they ever hauled up to … Read more

What if Earth’s Magnetic Field Flips Again?

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Earth's magnetic field - NASA

A reversal in Earth’s magnetic field thousands of years ago plunged the planet into an environmental crisis that may have resembled “a disaster movie,” scientists recently discovered. Our planet’s magnetic field is dynamic and, numerous times, it has flipped — when the magnetic North and South Poles swap places. In our electronics-dependent world, such a reversal could seriously disrupt communication networks. But the impact could be even more serious than that, according to the new study. For the first time, scientists have found evidence that a polar flip could have serious ecological repercussions. Their investigation connects a magnetic field reversal … Read more

Earth’s 200 Million Year Growth Spurt

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Earth's Core - Deposit Photos

Around 3 billion years ago, Earth’s crust ballooned during a massive growth spurt, geoscientists have found. At that time, just 1.5 billion years after Earth formed, the mantle — the layer of silicate rock between the crust and the outer core that was more active in the past — heated up, causing magma from that layer to ooze into fragments of older crust above it. Those fragments acted as “seeds” for the growth of modern-day continents. The researchers found evidence for this growth spurt hiding in ancient zircon crystals in stream sediments in Greenland. These extremely durable crystals — made … Read more

Earth is Dying Faster Than We Thought

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climate change - deposit photos

Humanity is barreling toward a “ghastly future” of mass extinctions, health crises and constant climate-induced disruptions to society — one that can only be prevented if world leaders start taking environmental threats seriously, scientists warn in a new paper published Jan. 13 in the journal Frontiers in Conservation Science. In the paper, a team of 17 researchers based in the United States, Mexico and Australia describes three major crises facing life on Earth: climate disruption, biodiversity decline and human overconsumption and overpopulation. Citing more than 150 studies, the team argues that these three crises — which are poised only to … Read more

FOR WRITERS: How Does Your Earth End?

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climate change - pixabay

FOR WRITERS Today’s writer topic comes from QSFer Scott: Have you ever destroyed the world (or at least the human part of it) in your work? If so, share the title, the link, and how you did it. Writers: This is a writer chat – you are welcome to share your own book/link, as long as it fits the chat, but please do so as part of a discussion about the topic. Join the chat: FB: http://bit.ly/1MvPABVMeWe: http://bit.ly/2mjg8lf

SPACE: What If There Was a Second Planet in Earth’s Orbit?

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double earth - pixabay

Earth is the only planet traveling within its nearly circular orbit around the sun. But what if Earth shared its orbit with another planet? One of the most unusual ways in which two planets might “co-orbit,” or share the same zone around their star, are so-called horseshoe orbits. Instead of both worlds moving in a circle around a star, each would move along the edge of their own somewhat horseshoe-shaped track, with these crescents facing each other like two halves of a broken ring. “I think horseshoe orbits are among the most exciting configurations for other Earths,” astrophysicist Sean Raymond … Read more

SPACE: Did Mars Steal Our Second Moon?

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asteroid - pixabay

An asteroid trailing after Mars could actually be the stolen twin of our moon. The asteroid in question, called (101429) 1998 VF31, is part of a group of trojan asteroids sharing the orbit of Mars. Trojans are celestial bodies that fall into gravitationally balanced regions of space in the vicinity of other planets, located 60 degrees in front of and behind the planet. Most of the trojan asteroids we know about share Jupiter’s orbit, but other planets have them too, including Mars and Earth too. Full Story From Live Science

What If The Earth Had Rings?

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earth with rings - deposit photos

The series “Imaginary Earths” speculates what the world might be like if one key aspect of life was changed, be if the planet or with humanity itself. What might Earth be like if it had rings, or if everyone could photosynthesize like plants? The rings of Saturn grant the planet a majesty befitting a world named after the king of the Titans. Made nearly completely of bits and chunks of ice and spanning thousands of miles wide, Saturn’s rings have been its most spellbinding feature ever since Galileo discovered the first signs of them in 1610. What might Earth be … Read more

SPACE: The Moon is Rusty, And It’s Earth’s Fault

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moon - pixabay

The moon is turning ever so slightly red, and it’s likely Earth’s fault. Our planet’s atmosphere may be causing the moon to rust, new research finds. Rust, also known as an iron oxide, is a reddish compound that forms when iron is exposed to water and oxygen. Rust is the result of a common chemical reaction for nails, gates, the Grand Canyon’s red rocks — and even Mars. The Red Planet is nicknamed after its reddish hue that comes from the rust it acquired long ago when iron on its surface combined with oxygen and water, according to a statement … Read more

What If Humans Went Extinct?

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climate change - pixabay

Deep within Guatemala’s rainforest sits one of the most famous remnants of the Maya civilization: a roughly 2,000-year-old citadel turned to ruins called Tikal. When Alan Weisman hiked through the surrounding region, he discovered something fascinating along the way: “You’re walking through this really dense rainforest, and you’re walking over hills,” said Weisman, author and journalist. “And the archaeologists are explaining to you that what you’re really walking over are pyramids and cities that haven’t been excavated.” In other words, we know about sites like Tikal because humans have gone to great efforts to dig up and restore their remains. … Read more