How did Earth end up with so much water?

The short answer is, nobody really knows. In the past, Pound360 explored this question when Japanese researchers suggested oxides in the Earths crust reacted with a "thick blanket of hydrogen" surrounding the early earth to create our oceans.

The problem with that is that water in our oceans has the same molecular makeup as water in asteroids (yes, asteroids, not comets). "Molecular makeup," you ask, "isn't water just H20, how can that vary?" Well, a hydrogen molecule can have extra protons and neutrons. In the case water on Earth, much of it has an extra neutron and proton. This type of hydrogen scientists refer to as "heavy hydrogen" or "deuterium."

Worth noting is, according to a Wikipedia entry, the Earth was formed within the Solar System's "snow line" (which exists about where the Asteroid Belt is). Within the snowline, you're close enough to the sun that water is vaporized. Outside of that line, it's cold enough that water is turned to ice. Of course, if water is vapor, it's tough for a small planet or moon to attract and keep it.

As the Earth formed, much of the water present (yes there was some) was "outgassed" and drifted away in the solar wind. It wasn't until the Earth got much larger that its gravity was capable or retaining the original water which continued to seep from the interior of the Earth via volcanic activity. But that would only account for some of the water we have today.

The Wikipedia entry also acknowledges extraterrestrial sources like asteroids and homemade sources like photosynthesis. Indeed, early life synthesizing hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and carbon dioxide (CO2) would have released H20 (and some other stuff).

Another possibility according to the Wikipedia write-up, the massive object that (probably) collided with the Earth 4-point-some-billion-years-ago creating the Moon may have been an icy planetoid like Jupiter's moon Europa. But Pound360 wonders how that might have happened since this frozen wanderer would have had to drift from beyond the Solar System's "snow line," right? And that means it would have had to escape Jupiter's tremendous pull, which seems to us (in our pretty limited understanding of astrophysics) unlikely.

Earth's Molten Core Anything But Stable

Deep beneath your feet (a few thousand kilometers), the molten part of the Earth's core (there's a solid part in the middle) is moving "surprisingly quickly," reports ScienceDaily. This according to scientists studying info from the Orsted magnetometer, a satellite that measures changes in the Earth's magnetic field (which is affected by currents at the core).

Unfortunately, there's no deeper insight here. For example, that a shift in our magnetic poles could change overnight due to a sudden shift in the molten core's flow. However, Pound360 was fascinated to be reminded the Earth isn't just a giant stone.

Let's check out the image bellow (courtesy of Wikipedia contributor Drake).

In addition to the solid metal core (6) and liquid molten core (5), there's a lower (4) and upper (5) mantle. While the mantel is technically rock, according to Wikipedia, the lower section is under so much pressure that "it can flow on very long timescales." Ultimately, this flow is what brings us plate tectonics.

Wait, The Ozone Hole is a Good Thing?

That hole in the ozone layer over Antarctica may be keeping the globe cool according to a couple of recent reports. This according to a recent report at Scientific American.

For decades, chemicals led by chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) were gouging a hole in the ozone layer above the South Pole. Ozone is important since it blocks some ultraviolet radiation.

Then in 1996 an international ban on CFCs has helped shrink the hole. But if it's sealed, computer models show wind patterns that keep Antarctica cool (the "westerlies") could be altered, and the icy continent could melt more rapidly than it already is.

Scientists also theorize the ozone layer could trap greenhouse gasses and accelerate warming at the South Pole.

Does this mean the hole in the ozone is a good thing? Pound360 thinks higher UV radiation levels are a pretty steep price to pay for a cooler planet.

Oil Reserves May Be Significantly Underestimated

As you might expect them to, oil companies give conservative estimates on how much oil is available in their oil fields. They do this of course so they can beat expectations. The problem is, people take these estimates as gospel, and that's part of the reason oil prices have been spiraling upwards and pulling prices at the pump up with them, reports New Scientist.

According to industry estimates, we're down to about 1200 billion barrels of oil. But one expert, the former chief executive of the UK Royal Society of Chemistry (and oil industry advisor), believes there may be twice the amount that estimates suggest.

This is a good and a bad thing. It's a good thing because gas prices could come down if we come up with a better way to measure reserves. But it's a bad thing because if there's twice as much oil, that means there's twice as much CO2 for us to pump into the atmosphere.

After Ice Age, Ice Bergs Floated Off South Carolina Coast

Following the last ice age, as the great North American ice sheets disintegrated, "a flotilla of icebergs" drifted into the Atlantic and reached as far south as the South Carolina coast, reports New Scientist.

Scientists are able to trace the paths of ancient icebergs by examining "gouges" where they ran into shallow sea beds. The South Carolina gouges are just 10 to 100 meters wide, but about 10 kilometers long.

So what? Come on. How could it not be cool to see a giant ice berg (or imagine ice bergs) looming off the coast?

Fighting Back (Literally, like with Death Rays) Against Killer Storms

It's been a brutal year in Tornado Alley. So far there have been about 1,200 twisters (compared to an average 1,254), 110 deaths from 30 killer tornados and at least 22 tornadoes have topped the Fujita Scale (used to measure tornado intensity) as level 5s. All this according to a report at LiveScience.

What can we do? One suggestion is to move. Almost half of deaths have occurred in mobile homes. But that's not the American way. We're not used to yielding to mother nature. So how about we fight?

According to a report at Discover Magazine, there are a few weather-controlling options on the table. For tornadoes, you could beam them with microwaves. As a result, water in the funnel clouds would heat up, the convective forces would be disrupted and no more tornado. Researchers are also at work on devices that could redirect lightning bolts better than conventional lightning rods and ultraviolet lasers to create rainfall.

(Photo courtesy NOAA)

Andes May Have Sprung Up in 'A Blink of An Eye'

A geologic "blink of an eye," to be specific, reports New Scientist. Mountain ranges, one would guess, grow over hundreds of millions of years, but according to a theory by University of Rochester scientists, it's possible the Andes grew 1.5 miles in just 4 million years, "a geological blink of an eye."

The growth spurt may have been caused by a "controversial geological theory" known as delamination. According to the theory, it's possible thick lower layers of a tectonic plate can drop off. When this occurs, the thin plate becomes unstable and crumples like the hood of a car in a crash.

Low Levels of Ocean Oxygen Threatens Marine Life

As the globe warms, so do the oceans. Unfortunately, warmer water holds less oxygen. That's bad for marine life. According to a New Scientist report, the drop in ocean oxygen "could massively deplete marine life and fish stocks."

The alarm was triggered this week following a German study that showed oxygen depletion was affecting deep ocean waters. Their findings were based on data stretching back to the 1960s.

It's tough to be a fish these days. As if oxygen depletion weren't bad enough. People are doing a pretty good job of wiping them out. Last November, the Washington Post reported on an international study that predicted if our current fishing practices continue, "the world will run out of seafood by 2048."

Study Shows Thunderstorm Activity Highest at Mid-Week

It sounds like an old wives' tale, but it's true: rain and thunderstorms are "bigger, more intense, and more frequent in the middle of the week than on weekends."

The answer? Pollution of course. According to Environmental Protection Agency numbers, "particulate emissions peak in the middle of the workweek." More particles in the air mean more stuff for moisture to coalesce upon, thus more rain.

A Stunning Look at Sand, Humble Sand

We at Pound360 are firm believers that, given the right perspective, anything can be beautiful. Isn't that what, say, a great photographer is? Somebody with an eye to spot and capture the extraordinary in everyday life?

Anyway, over at DiscoverMagazine.com, they have a fascinating gallery showing sand (yes, boring old sand like the stuff at the beach) at the microscopic level, where every grain is "a tiny work of art."

Early Earth May Have Rotated MUCH Faster

Before the mega-collision that scientist believe created the moon, Earth may have rotated on its axis once every four hours, reports New Scientist. Imagine that. Two hours of daylight. Two hours of stars. Pretty amazing. How different would life on Earth be? Would there be life at all? Could intelligent life developed with short, frequent sleep patterns?

According to the New Scientist piece, an object the size of Mars collided with the Earth about 4.5 billion years ago. The impact would have delivered enough force to significantly slow the Earth's early rotation, perhaps reversing it. The collision also would have created a cloud of debris that eventually formed the moon.

Government Study Shows Disastrous Shake Imminent

New scientists recommends Southern Californians prepare for higher home insurance in the wake of a new US Geological Survey (USGS) study showing a better than even chance the area will be rocked by at least a 6.7 magnitude quake by 2037. The chances of a catastrophic 7.5-or-greater is 46 percent. For San Francisco, there’s a 63 percent chance a 6.7-or-harder earthquake will strike in the next 20 years.

The first-of-its-kind, three-year study is being called “the most comprehensive earthquake forecast ever for the state of California” by the USGS.

‘Curious’ Cloud Formations May Signal Looming Catastrophe

This is pretty bizarre, but a pair of Chinese scientists are investigating whether or not “distinctive cloud formations above an active fault in Iran” are linked to magnitude 6+ earthquakes that have killed hundreds in the region, reports New Scientist.

Two months prior to earthquakes in 2005 and 2006, an odd gap appeared in the clouds above an Iranian fault line. The 2005 quake, a magnitude 6.4 killed 600 people. Chinese scientists speculate the cloud gap may have been caused by hot gasses seeping from the fault before a quake. The temperature along the fault was elevated before the quake as well.

If a link is found, we may be able to predict certain types of quakes along certain types of faults (at a minimum). But the predictions would probably never be completely accurate.

Pound360 wonders what you’re supposed to tell a population if predictions show a quake is imminent. Imagine the anxiety that would spread. Would the freeways, airports jam with people fleeing? What if the quake never comes and general anxiety lingers for months?

Warming Globe May Increase Volcanic Activity

Every day it seems scientists are uncovering a surprising new consequence of global warming. Today it's volcanic activity according to a report at New Scientist.

It seems like a long-shot, but as ice caps melt and sea levels rise, pressure on the Earth's crust is going to be shifting around. As the stress is relieved in some areas, increased in others, volcanic activity may appear in new places and the frequency of activity in regular spots may increase. For example, in some arctic regions, the period between eruptions may shrink from 58 to 30 years.

According to one expert, "We are going to see a massive increase in volcanic activity globally… if we look back at previous warm periods, that is what happened."

Hawaii's Pu'u 'O'o Erupts in 1983 (Photograph by J.D. Griggs, courtesy USGS)

If Globe is Warming, why the Harsh Winter?

According to the US National Climactic Data Center, "the average temperature of the global land surface in January 2008 was below the 20th century mean (-0.02°F/-0.01°C) for the first time since 1982," reports the Telegraph. The record cold has led to record snow falls, the return of arctic sea ice and a heyday for global warming skeptics.

So is the party over for Al Gore and the overwhelming majority of scientists who agree the planet is getting hotter, due in part to human activity?

Not exactly.

In a NY Times piece on this subject, one scientist shrugged, "The current downturn is not very unusual." The Earth has had other extremely cold winters over the past 20 years, for example in 1988, 1991 and 1998. But a "long-term warming trend" persists.

According to the Times, one cold winter just ain't enough to debunk global warming. "The cool spell in no way undermines the enormous body of evidence pointing to a warming world," according to a consensus among scientists, gathered by the Times.

So what's going on?

In a recent feature at the Christian Science Monitor, they blame a couple of natural phenomena for the recent, brutal winter. First, a La Niña event in the Pacific which causes warm water to concentrate in the western tropics, while colder-than-usual water settles in the east.

Ottawa recently had more than 20 inches of snow in one day
(Photo courtesy of Pound360 Canadian correspondent, The Grizzly)

But La Niña can't be the only factor since, compared to previous La Niña winters, "this winter failed to follow that script," reports the Monitor. Usually, La Niña leaves the US Southwest and Southeast dry. However, this winter, another weather anomaly, the "Madden-Julian Oscillation" is also in play.

The Madden-Julian, from what I gather at the Monitor and Wikipedia's entry on the subject, is a moisture-packed event that persistently circles the globe every couple of months. It appears the Madden-Julian remains a mystery in many ways, but explains the unusual La Niña this year.

Combined, the Madden-Julian and La Niña seem to better explain this year's extreme winter better than a sudden end to global warming.

Sea Level to Plummet Over the Eons

In the short run, over the next century, global warming stoked by the flames of industry will force sea levels to rise two feet, according to a recent UN report.

But in the long run, sea levels will almost certainly plummet. A lot. According to recent research reported by Australia's ABC, sea levels will crash 393 feet over the next 80 million years. That's about .0005 inches per century.

If sea levels suddenly dropped 393 feet, Siberia would again be connected to Alaska, and the UK would be connected to Europe. According to predictions, the Atlantic will broaden, but the Pacific will shrink.

No, water isn't slowly evaporating into space; the ocean is getting deeper as the planet matures and mid-ocean ridges are replaced by deep-ocean plains. So far, ocean levels have dropped 557 feet since the Cretaceous period, about 80 million years ago.

What is Peatland? Pretty interesting stuff…

In putting together an earlier post, Pound360 investigated a word that we’ve never seen before, “peatland.” And before you get all arrogant on us, A) we never claimed to be intellectuals, or any more than slightly-below-average-smart and B) the Microsoft Word spell-checker doesn’t no what peatland is either, so there.

Anyhow, Pound360 learned at Wikipedia that peatland is pretty interesting terrain.

How it forms
Peatland is created when plant matter and other organic stuff like dead bugs and animals, “is inhibited from decaying fully by acidic and anaerobic conditions.” Our guess (it’s not fully explained at Wikipedia) is that certain bacteria can’t flourish in peatlands, so organic matter doesn’t get broken down as quickly and efficiently as is does elsewhere.

Where it forms
You can find peatland in the higher latitudes where it’s damp and cool, places like Russia, Scotland, Finland, New Zeland, Canada and United States like Minnesota and Michigan. In most of these places, peat bogs originally formed as glaciers retreated at the close of the last ice age, about 9,000 years ago. About 60 percent of global wetlands, or 3 percent of the Earth’s surface is covered by peatland.

Interesting side note, “under the right conditions, peat is the earliest stage in the formation of coal.”

When it burns
Peat is a super carbon-rich material that grows dense and deep, and burns long, slow and hard (super smoulders). According to Wikipedia, once ignited, a peat fire can burn undetected for “months, years and even centuries.” For example, in Indonesia, 1997, there was a particularly intense peat fire outbreak. To this day, over ten years later, “more than 100 peat fires in Kalimantan and East Sumatra continue to burn.”

Peat in the ancient world
Vikings figured out that peat bogs were a source of iron ore, which they used to make swords and armor. Further back, Bronze and Iron Age people figured “nature gods and spirits” lived in peat bogs. So naturally, they would sacrifice people there, and leave the corpses. Due to the “tanning properties of the acidic water” in peat bogs, to this day, we’re still finding the “almost perfectly preserved” corpses of the sacrificed.

Booo! Underground ‘Ocean’ Not Really an Ocean

When I saw this headline at LiveScience, “Huge 'Ocean' Discovered Inside Earth,” my imagination took off. First, I saw the scene at the start of “The Two Towers” where Gandalf rides the flaming balrog into a massive underground cavern with a lake at the bottom. Then I thought of a vast underwater civilization like that in the Abyss or Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.

But alas, what they’re calling an “ocean” is actually just a huge region of water-logged rock. Indeed, rock (porous as it often is) can absorb a fair amount of water. For example, “some ocean floor rocks is up to 15 percent water.”

So what they found is actually a bunch of wet rock. A lot of wet rock. So much that it contains “at least the volume of the Arctic Ocean.” Somehow, I’m still not impressed.

Look for this reservoir, known as the “Beijing anomaly” under Asia.

Scientists believe movement of the earth’s crust is forcing water-rich rock under Asia. As the rock descends into the earth’s hot mantle, the water evaporates, rises, and steadily saturates the region now known as the “Beijing anomaly.”

On a more impressive note, the LiveScience article points out that water plays a key role in plate tectonics. “One of [water’s] many functions is to act like a lubricant for the movement of continental plates.” According to one scientists, lack of water may be one reason that Venus has no plate movement. “The system is locked up, like a rusty Tin Man with no oil,” said seismologist Michael Wysession of Washington University in St. Louis. Wysession discovered the Beijing anomaly along with a grad student, Jesse Lawrence.

New Theory on Origin of Earth’s Water and Why You Should Care

A few weeks ago, I described a theory on how water could form in space, and how that water (in the form of ice) could reach the surface of the Earth in the form of comets or deposits on asteroids. And most scientists believe this is how water ended up on Earth. But a new theory by scientists at the Tokyo Institute of Technology suggests, “water brewed at home, not in space,” according to a New Scientist report.

Who cares? Well, you owe your existence to water on this planet. Said one Japanese researcher, “Water is essential for the origin and evolution of life. Why does water exist on Earth, where did it come from? These are fundamental questions for human beings."

According to the new theory, the primordial earth was covered in a “thick blanket of hydrogen.” Over time, oxides from the Earth’s mantle reacted with the hydrogen to form water droplets, and then puddles, ponds, lakes, rivers and eventually seas and oceans.

The theory isn’t without soft spots. One reason scientists mostly agree that water came from outer space is the chemical signature of water on Earth. As it turns out, water on Earth has a similar chemical makeup as water in asteroids. Basically, the ratio of heavy-hydrogen to hydrogen is pretty much the same in the Pacific Ocean as it is in an asteroid drifting between, say, Jupiter and Mars.

For the wonks that are still with me here, “heavy hydrogen” is the common man’s term for “deuterium.” Deuterium is hydrogen with an extra neutron and proton.

Where Did the Water On Earth Come From?

Most scientists would agree that water on Earth, so vital for the development of life, came from comets and asteroids, rife with ice, slamming into the planet as it formed. But where did the ice in those comets and asteroids come from?

One possibility is the water was formed in clouds of interstellar dust (that’s the stuff between solar systems). But new evidence from NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope, suggests water may be created within a solar system at its earliest stages, reports the BBC.

The findings come from observations made of a young star system 1,000 light years away known as IRAS 4B. The system, reports the BBC, “is still growing inside a cool cocoon of gas and dust.” The “cocoon” is about 200 degrees below zero and as wide as the distance between Earth and Pluto.

Within the outer reaches of the cocoon, water seems to be forming as ice. As it forms, it’s being pulled toward the “embryonic star” at the center. As it approaches, the water is vaporized. So far, there’s enough water vapor to fill the oceans of earth five times over. Eventually, scientists believe, the vapor will condense into ice again, then create comets or join asteroids.

Eventually, the comets or asteroids may “crash down onto whatever planets they find, forming oceans that the future scientists of these worlds will someday be scratching their heads over,” suggests TIME.