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The origin of life on Earth, explained

The origin of life on Earth stands as one of the great mysteries of science. Various answers have been proposed, all of which remain unverified. To find out if we are alone in the galaxy, we will need to better understand what geochemical conditions nurtured the first life forms. What water, chemistry and temperature cycles fostered the chemical reactions that allowed life to emerge on our planet? Because life arose in the largely unknown surface conditions of Earth’s early history, answering these and other questions remains a challenge.

Several seminal experiments in this topic have been conducted at the University of Chicago, including the Miller-Urey experiment that suggested how the building blocks of life could form in a primordial soup.

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• When did life on Earth begin?

Where did life on Earth begin?

What are the ingredients of life on earth, what are the major scientific theories for how life emerged, what is chirality and why is it biologically important, what research are uchicago scientists currently conducting on the origins of life, when did life on earth begin .

Earth is about 4.5 billion years old. Scientists think that by 4.3 billion years ago, Earth may have developed conditions suitable to support life. The oldest known fossils, however, are only 3.7 billion years old. During that 600 million-year window, life may have emerged repeatedly, only to be snuffed out by catastrophic collisions with asteroids and comets.

The details of those early events are not well preserved in Earth’s oldest rocks. Some hints come from the oldest zircons, highly durable minerals that formed in magma. Scientists have found traces of a form of carbon—an important element in living organisms— in one such 4.1 billion-year-old zircon . However, it does not provide enough evidence to prove life’s existence at that early date.

Two possibilities are in volcanically active hydrothermal environments on land and at sea.

Some microorganisms thrive in the scalding, highly acidic hot springs environments like those found today in Iceland, Norway and Yellowstone National Park. The same goes for deep-sea hydrothermal vents. These chimney-like vents form where seawater comes into contact with magma on the ocean floor, resulting in streams of superheated plumes. The microorganisms that live near such plumes have led some scientists to suggest them as the birthplaces of Earth’s first life forms.

Organic molecules may also have formed in certain types of clay minerals that could have offered favorable conditions for protection and preservation. This could have happened on Earth during its early history, or on comets and asteroids that later brought them to Earth in collisions. This would suggest that the same process could have seeded life on planets elsewhere in the universe.

The recipe consists of a steady energy source, organic compounds and water.

Sunlight provides the energy source at the surface, which drives photosynthesis. On the ocean floor, geothermal energy supplies the chemical nutrients that organisms need to live.

Also crucial are the elements important to life . For us, these are carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and phosphorus. But there are several scientific mysteries about how these elements wound up together on Earth. For example, scientists would not expect a planet that formed so close to the sun to naturally incorporate carbon and nitrogen. These elements become solid only under very cold temperatures, such as exist in the outer solar system, not nearer to the sun where Earth is. Also, carbon, like gold, is rare at the Earth’s surface. That’s because carbon chemically bonds more often with iron than rock. Gold also bonds more often with metal, so most of it ends up in the Earth’s core. So, how did the small amounts found at the surface get there? Could a similar process also have unfolded on other planets?

The last ingredient is water. Water now covers about 70% of Earth’s surface, but how much sat on the surface 4 billion years ago? Like carbon and nitrogen, water is much more likely to become a part of solid objects that formed at a greater distance from the sun. To explain its presence on Earth, one theory proposes that a class of meteorites called carbonaceous chondrites formed far enough from the sun to have served as a water-delivery system.

There are several theories for how life came to be on Earth. These include:

Life emerged from a primordial soup

As a University of Chicago graduate student in 1952, Stanley Miller performed a famous experiment with Harold Urey, a Nobel laureate in chemistry. Their results explored the idea that life formed in a primordial soup.

Miller and Urey injected ammonia, methane and water vapor into an enclosed glass container to simulate what were then believed to be the conditions of Earth’s early atmosphere. Then they passed electrical sparks through the container to simulate lightning. Amino acids, the building blocks of proteins, soon formed. Miller and Urey realized that this process could have paved the way for the molecules needed to produce life.

Scientists now believe that Earth’s early atmosphere had a different chemical makeup from Miller and Urey’s recipe. Even so, the experiment gave rise to a new scientific field called prebiotic or abiotic chemistry, the chemistry that preceded the origin of life. This is the opposite of biogenesis, the idea that only a living organism can beget another living organism.

Seeded by comets or meteors

Some scientists think that some of the molecules important to life may be produced outside the Earth. Instead, they suggest that these ingredients came from meteorites or comets.

“A colleague once told me, ‘It’s a lot easier to build a house out of Legos when they’re falling from the sky,’” said Fred Ciesla, a geophysical sciences professor at UChicago. Ciesla and that colleague, Scott Sandford of the NASA Ames Research Center, published research showing that complex organic compounds were readily produced under conditions that likely prevailed in the early solar system when many meteorites formed.

Meteorites then might have served as the cosmic Mayflowers that transported molecular seeds to Earth. In 1969, the Murchison meteorite that fell in Australia contained dozens of different amino acids—the building blocks of life.

Comets may also have offered a ride to Earth-bound hitchhiking molecules, according to experimental results published in 2001 by a team of researchers from Argonne National Laboratory, the University of California Berkeley, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. By showing that amino acids could survive a fiery comet collision with Earth, the team bolstered the idea that life’s raw materials came from space.

In 2019, a team of researchers in France and Italy reported finding extraterrestrial organic material preserved in the 3.3 billion-year-old sediments of Barberton, South Africa. The team suggested micrometeorites as the material’s likely source. Further such evidence came in 2022 from samples of asteroid Ryugu returned to Earth by Japan’s Hayabusa2 mission. The count of amino acids found in the Ryugu samples now exceeds 20 different types .

In 1953, UChicago researchers published a landmark paper in the Journal of Biological Chemistry that marked the discovery of the pro-chirality concept , which pervades modern chemistry and biology. The paper described an experiment showing that the chirality of molecules—or “handedness,” much the way the right and left hands differ from one another—drives all life processes. Without chirality, large biological molecules such as proteins would be unable to form structures that could be reproduced.

Today, research on the origin of life at UChicago is expanding. As scientists have been able to find more and more exoplanets—that is, planets around stars elsewhere in the galaxy—the question of what the essential ingredients for life are and how to look for signs of them has heated up.

Nobel laureate Jack Szostak joined the UChicago faculty as University Professor in Chemistry in 2022 and will lead the University’s new interdisciplinary Origins of Life Initiative to coordinate research efforts into the origin of life on Earth. Scientists from several departments of the Physical Sciences Division are joining the initiative, including specialists in chemistry, astronomy, geology and geophysics.

“Right now we are getting truly unprecedented amounts of data coming in: Missions like Hayabusa and OSIRIS-REx are bringing us pieces of asteroids, which helps us understand the conditions that form planets, and NASA’s new JWST telescope is taking astounding data on the solar system and the planets around us ,” said Prof. Ciesla. “I think we’re going to make huge progress on this question.”

Last updated Sept. 19, 2022.

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An Informative Essay on Life on Earth In 150 Words

The planet Earth is the only home that we have. Many people have different opinions on what makes life worth living, but with so much to talk about, it can be hard to separate truth from fiction. What do you think makes life worth living?

Table of Contents

Importance Life On Earth Essay For Students

What is life on earth, an overview of life on earth.

Life on Earth is a beautiful and amazing phenomenon. From the first moment of existence, organisms have been striving to survive, grow, and thrive. This endless cycle of growth and development has led to the magnificent life we see today on our planet.

The diversity of life on Earth is simply astounding. From single-celled organisms to towering trees, every form of life has its own special way of surviving and thriving. No matter how different they may seem at first glance, all organisms share one common attribute – they are capable of reproducing themselves.

This ability to reproduce is what allows life to continue evolving and adapting over time. The ever-changing environment provides new opportunities for organisms to thrive, and as a result, they evolve into new and unique forms.

In short, life on Earth is a miraculous phenomenon that is constantly evolving and changing in interesting and unexpected ways. Thanks for reading!

How does life function on Earth?

The answer to this question is far from simple, and it has been debated by scientists and philosophers for centuries. However, the most general consensus in the scientific community is that life on Earth functions by harnessing energy from the sun. This energy is converted into chemical energy, which is then used to create biomolecules such as proteins and DNA. These biomolecules then interact with each other to create complex systems, including plants, animals, and humans.

Problems and risks: what are the dangers to life on Earth?

Life on Earth is in danger from a number of sources. The dangers to life on Earth come from a variety of sources, including natural disasters, environmental degradation, and human actions. Each year, a large number of people die as a result of these dangers.

Natural Disasters: Natural disasters cause death and injury to people all over the world. Natural disasters can be caused by weather conditions such as hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, or tornadoes. They can also be caused by animals, such as pandemics or animal attacks. Natural disasters can also be caused by human activities, such as mining accidents or nuclear accidents.

Environmental Degradation: Environmental degradation results in the loss of natural resources and the destruction of habitats. This can cause wildlife to become extinct, decrease food supplies, and increase pollution levels. Environmental degradation can also lead to the release of harmful chemicals into the environment.

Human Actions: Human actions can also endanger life on Earth. Human activities that endanger life on Earth include the use of pesticides, the disposal of waste products, and the use of fossil fuels. Human actions that protect life on Earth include the promotion of renewable energy sources and the conservation of natural resources.

In conclusion, life on earth is a fascinating and complex journey. We are constantly evolving as a species, and our planet is in the midst of some very big changes. As we learn more about our planet and its systems, it’s evident that we need to take care of it – for our own sake, and for the sake of future generations. Thank you for reading this essay on life on earth – I hope you have enjoyed learning about all of the incredible things happening here on Earth.

Hello! Welcome to my Blog StudyParagraphs.co. My name is Angelina. I am a college professor. I love reading writing for kids students. This blog is full with valuable knowledge for all class students. Thank you for reading my articles.

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• 16 October 2023

How would we know whether there is life on Earth? This bold experiment found out

• Alexandra Witze

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Anything down there? Earth as seen by the Galileo probe in 1990. Credit: NASA/JPL

It began the way many discoveries do — a tickling of curiosity in the back of someone’s mind. That someone was astronomer and communicator Carl Sagan. The thing doing the tickling was the trajectory of NASA’s Galileo spacecraft, which had launched in October 1989 and was the first to orbit Jupiter. The result was a paper in Nature 30 years ago this week that changed how scientists thought about looking for life on other planets.

The opportunity stemmed from a tragic mishap. Almost four years before Galileo’s launch, in January 1986, the space shuttle Challenger had exploded shortly after lift-off, taking seven lives with it. NASA cancelled its plans to dispatch Galileo on a speedy path to Jupiter using a liquid-fuelled rocket aboard another space shuttle. Instead, the probe was released more gently from an orbiting shuttle, with mission engineers slingshotting it around Venus and Earth so it could gain the gravitational boosts that would catapult it all the way to Jupiter.

On 8 December 1990, Galileo was due to skim past Earth, just 960 kilometres above the surface. The tickling became an itch that Sagan had to scratch. He talked NASA into pointing the spacecraft’s instruments at our planet. The resulting paper was titled ‘A search for life on Earth from the Galileo spacecraft’ 1 .

The outside view

We are in a unique position of knowing that life exists on Earth. To use our own home to test whether we could discern that remotely was an extraordinary suggestion at the time, when so little was known about the environments in which life might thrive. “It’s almost like a science-fiction story wrapped up in a paper,” says David Grinspoon, senior scientist for astrobiology strategy at NASA’s headquarters in Washington DC. “Let’s imagine that we’re seeing Earth for the first time.”

It came at a time, too, when the search for life elsewhere in the Solar System was at a low ebb. US and Soviet robotic missions in the 1960s and 1970s had revealed that Venus — once thought to be a haven for exotic organisms — was hellishly hot beneath its dense clouds of carbon dioxide. Mars, crisscrossed by the ‘irrigation canals’ of astronomers’ imagination 2 , was a seemingly barren wasteland. In 1990, no one yet knew about the buried oceans that lay on Jupiter’s moon Europa — a discovery that Galileo would go on to make 3 — or on Saturn’s moon Enceladus, both of which are now seen as potential cradles of extraterrestrial life.

Crucially, Sagan and his collaborators took a deliberately agnostic approach to the detection of life, says astrobiologist Lisa Kaltenegger, who heads the Carl Sagan Institute at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. “Of course he wants to find life, every scientist does,” she says. “But he says, let’s take that wish and be even more cautious — because we want to find it.” The existence of life was to be, in the words of the paper, the “hypothesis of last resort” for explaining what Galileo observed.

But even through this veil of scepticism, the spacecraft delivered. High-resolution images of Australia and Antarctica obtained as Galileo flew overhead did not yield signs of civilization. Still, Galileo measured oxygen and methane in Earth’s atmosphere, the latter in ratios that suggested a disequilibrium brought about by living organisms. It spotted a steep cliff in the infrared spectrum of sunlight reflecting off the planet, a distinctive ‘red edge’ that indicates the presence of vegetation. And it picked up radio transmissions coming from the surface that were moderated as if engineered. “A strong case can be made that the signals are generated by an intelligent form of life on Earth,” Sagan’s team wrote, rather cheekily.

A powerful control

Karl Ziemelis, now chief physical sciences editor at Nature , handled the paper as a rookie editor. He says it remains one of his favourites — and one of the hardest to get in. Editorial approval for the paper was far from unanimous, because it was not obviously describing something new. But, according to Ziemelis, that was mostly beside the point. “It was an incredibly powerful control experiment for something that wasn’t really on many people’s radar at the time,” he says.

“While the answer was known, it profoundly changed our way of thinking about the answer,” says Kaltenegger. Only by stepping back and regarding Earth as a planet like any other — perhaps harbouring life, perhaps not — can researchers begin to get a true perspective on our place in the Universe and the likelihood of life elsewhere, she says.

No sign of civilization in Australia. Credit: NASA/JPL

It takes on a new importance given developments since the Galileo flyby. In 1990, no planets orbiting stars other than the Sun were known. It was another two years before astronomers conclusively reported the first ‘exoplanet’ orbiting a rotating dead star known as a pulsar 4 , and three years more before they found 5 the first around a Sun-like star, 51 Pegasi. Today, scientists know of more than 5,500 exoplanets, few of which look like anything in the Solar System. They range from ‘super-Earths’ with bizarre geologies and ‘mini-Neptunes’ with gassy atmospheres to ‘hot Jupiters’, huge planets whirling close to their blazing stars.

When Sagan and his colleagues pointed Galileo at Earth, they invented a scientific framework for looking for signs of life on these other worlds — one that has permeated every search for such biosignatures since. Kaltenegger still gives Sagan’s paper to her students to show them how it is done. Life is the last, not first, inference to draw when seeing something unusual on another planet, she tells them. Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.

The right mix for life

This lesson could not be more important today, as scientists stand on the verge of potentially revolutionary, and perhaps monumentally confusing, discoveries by the powerful James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). The telescope is just beginning its remote exploration of the atmospheres of dozens of exoplanets, hunting for the same sort of chemical disequilibrium that Galileo spotted in Earth’s atmosphere. It is already turning up early hints of biosignatures that might lead scientists and the public astray.

For instance, JWST has sniffed out methane in the atmosphere of at least one planet. That gas is a powerful signature of life on Earth, but it can also come from volcanoes, no life required. Oxygen captures scientists’ attention because much of it is generated by life on Earth, but it can also be formed by light splitting apart molecules of water or carbon dioxide. Finding the right combination of methane and oxygen could indicate the presence of life on another planet — but that world needs to be located in a temperate zone, not too hot nor too cold. Getting the right mix of life-sustaining ingredients in a life-friendly environment is challenging, Kaltenegger says.

The same is true for other intriguing mixes of atmospheric gases. Just last month, astronomers sifting through JWST data reported finding methane and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of a large exoplanet called K2-18 b. They suggested that the planet might have water oceans covering its surface, and hinted at tantalizing detections of dimethyl sulfide, a compound that, on Earth, comes from phytoplankton and other living organisms 6 .

Headlines ran wild, with news stories reporting possible signs of life on K2-18 b. Never mind that the presence of dimethyl sulfide was reported with low confidence and needed further validation. Nor that no water had actually been detected on the planet. And, even if water were present, it might be in an ocean so deep as to choke off all geological activity that could maintain a temperate atmosphere.

Building evidence

Challenges such as these led Jim Green, a former chief scientist at NASA, to propose a framework in 2021 for how to report evidence for life beyond Earth 7 . A progressive scale, from one to seven, for example, could help to convey the level of evidence for life in a particular discovery, he argues. Maybe you’ve got a signal that could result from biological activity — that would just be a one on the scale. You’d need to work through many more steps, such as ruling out contamination and acquiring independent evidence of the strength of that signal before you could get to level 7 and demonstrate a true discovery of life beyond Earth.

It could take a long time. A telescope might sniff out an intriguing molecule, and scientists would argue about it. Another telescope might be built to work out the context of the observation. Each brick of evidence must be placed on top of another, each layer of mortar mixed through the arguments, scepticism and agnosticism of many, many scientists. And that’s assuming that life on another world resembles that on Earth — an assumption underlying the conclusions drawn from Galileo’s observations. “The uncertainty may last years or decades,” Grinspoon says. Sagan, who died in 1996, would have loved it.

The same year that Galileo observed Earth, Sagan convinced NASA to point another spacecraft in a direction the agency had not been planning. As Voyager 1 raced past Neptune on its way out of the Solar System, it turned its cameras back towards Earth and photographed a tiny speck, gleaming in a sunbeam. This was the iconic Pale Blue Dot image that inspired Sagan to ruminate in his 1994 book Pale Blue Dot : “That’s here. That’s home. That’s us.”

That fragile gleaming pixel reshaped how humanity visualizes its place in the Cosmos. So, too, did using Galileo to look for life on Earth, says Kaltenegger: “This is how we can use our pale blue dot to provide a template for the search for life on other planets.”

Nature 622 , 451-452 (2023)

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Essays About Earth: 7 Essay Examples And Topic Ideas

There are many things you need to know about our planet, so if you’re making essays about Earth, you can read these sample essays and topic ideas.

The planet Earth is where we, humans, and other living creatures live. It also provides us with all the necessities we need – air to breathe, water to drink, and soil to grow fruits and vegetables. Without its natural resources, life would be impossible for all of us. 

Writing an essay about Earth can help give knowledge and spread awareness about climate change or look at the beauty of our planet. If you are writing an essay about the Earth, here are some essay examples and topic ideas to help you get started.

Tip: If you want to use the latest grammar software, read our guide to using an AI grammar checker .

1. Short Essay On The Structure Of Planet Earth By Shyam Soni

2. interest and concern about the fate of the earth by john olson, 3. our planet in danger by derrick wells, 4. a planet without trees: a nightmare or our future by shannon cain, 5. the possibility of an asteroid falling to earth by lewis rios, 6. save earth before colonizing mars by luz estrada, 7. my earth, my responsibility by poonam ghimire, topic idea essays about earth, 1. are there more planets like earth, 2. how has the earth’s surface changed over the years, 3. causes and effects of global warming, 4. does planting trees and reforestation help limit global warming, 5. how does population growth affect earth’s climate change, 6.  human impacts on the planet earth, 7. how did the planet earth form.

“Direct observation of the interior of the Earth is not possible as the interior becomes hotter with depth which is convincingly indicated by the volcanic eruptions. Apart from the seismological studies, other important sources of data, even though indirect, logically prove that the Earth’s body comprises several layers, which are like shells resting one above the other. These layers are distinguished by their physical and chemical properties, particularly, their thickness, depth, density, temperature, metallic content, and rocks.”

Author Shyam Soni discusses some essential facts about the structure of the planet Earth. This essay focuses on its layered structure and the differences in the density and temperature at different depths.

“I have found myself increasingly interested and concerned with the fate of the Earth and the way humankind views sustainability. In my perspective, many humans believe that Earth’s materials and resources are infinite, they will always be there to feed and maintain human life. The Earth will endlessly support and provide for the needs of the humans that inhabit it. Yet, that is just simply not true, as the human population grows we use more and more of the natural resources Earth provides.”

Author John Olson shares his point of view about the Earth’s “infinite” resources and its sustainability. However, Olson tells us that it may not be as unlimited as we think because of the rapid growth of the human population.

“Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in the 18th century that started in England, the people during those times were already writing down the blueprint for a problem that the succeeding generations will have to face – the increasing problem of Carbon Dioxide emissions in our atmosphere. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is released in tons, millions of tons every day in every country – released from various factories and cars most especially. This buildup of toxic gases such as the carbon dioxide heats up our planet thereby increasing the possibility, and the danger of global warming – this is what we call the greenhouse effect.”

Author Derrick Wells talks about one of the environmental problems we are facing today – the Greenhouse Effect and the actions that we could take to save our planet Earth from the danger it can pose.

“Can we imagine a world without trees? What a world without trees would look like? Could such a world even exist? Let us close our eyes, and try to imagine a desolate Earth. Imagine no more paper, and everyone would have to resort to some other source or maybe technology could help, but that is, if anyone was left at that time. Trees are an important factor to our existence not only because they produce paper, lumber, or chewing gum, but due to the fact that they serve an important role in the carbon cycle, they are the key to our very existence! Due to the ever increasing population, that seemingly distant future is getting near each passing day.”

Author Shannon Cain shares his thought about a planet without trees, telling us what it would be like and what we can do to prevent it from happening to our home planet – the Earth. 

“Jonathan Haidt gave a speech about the possibility of an asteroid falling on Earth and asked the audience what people could do to stop them. Haidt notes that if an asteroid threatens to destroy the Earth, people will forget about their differences and stand together to fight for their survival. This is what he refers a common ground in the midst of a crisis. Haidt’s video shows us the many problems that people are facing, but yet people cannot find a common ground to fight them while the issues are threatening all of us.”

Author Lewis Rios talks about the possibility of an asteroid falling on Earth and then relates it to some common problems we are facing right now. Such as poverty, which tells us that we should all cooperate and work together to find a solution to these threats to survive. 

“Has humanity irreversibly defaced Earth from being a sustainable planet for further centuries? Many would believe that humanity has come to a point of constant destruction of Earth with no hope for change. This thought process has come forth with the resolution of starting a new sustainable planet on Mars. However, it is tremendously more challenging to restart than to fix damage and change simplistic daily routines.” 

Author Luz Estrada shares her opinion about the plan of starting a new sustainable planet on Mars. Estrada shares with the readers that it is much easier to save and fix Earth – as it is now – rather than thinking of starting a new life on a different planet, which is impossible for most people.

“Earth is a beautiful living planet in the Universe and the common habitat of more than 7 billion human population and millions of species of biodiversity. Our Earth provides us with food, shelter, and most of our requirements. Despite unavoidable free services provided by the earth to humans, we are not able to pay off her kindness to us. Rather we humans are being cruel to our Earth with our selfish activities.”

Author Poonam Ghimire talks about the selfish acts that cause Earth’s slow destruction. Ghimire encourages the readers to be responsible enough to protect and preserve our planet for the next generations.

Earth, our home, is the only planet known to support life, although there are current missions determining Mars’ past and future potential for life. While scientists continue to look for signs of life elsewhere in the universe, Earth remains the only place where we’ve ever identified living creatures. If you are writing an essay about the Earth, you can use this topic idea to discuss some Earth-like planets discovered so far.

The planet Earth has not always looked the same way it looks today; the United States, a billion years ago, was in a completely different location compared to where it is today! So, how does this happen? Why does this happen? In your essay about the Earth, you can use this topic idea to give the readers some understanding of how our planet has changed over time – like the things that took place and are still taking place.

Recent global warming is mainly because of human actions, which involve releasing greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. An increase in greenhouse gases leads to a more significant greenhouse effect, which results in increased global warming. Global warming is also being felt everywhere – drought, heatwaves, melting glaciers, rising sea levels, and storms. If you are writing an essay about the Earth, you can discuss this topic in more detail to spread awareness to your readers out there.

Planting more trees is one of the most effective ways to lessen atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) and stop global warming. As the forests grow, they remove the carbon dioxide from the air through photosynthesis, which works as a natural reservoir to store carbon. Reforestation, one of the planned projects worldwide, is thought to help protect the environment for the next generations. You can use this topic idea for your essay about the Earth to encourage your readers to plant more trees to reduce the harmful effects of deforestation and save our home planet, Earth, from getting slowly destroyed.

Since humans require fossil fuels to power their increasingly mechanized lifestyles, human population growth is undoubtedly a significant contributor to global warming. More people mean more demand for oil, gas, coal, and other underground fuels that, when burned, release enough carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere to trap warm air inside like a greenhouse. So, in your essay about the Earth, let your readers know to what extent human population growth affects climate change and what can be done about it. 

Humans affect the planet Earth in many ways – overpopulation, pollution, burning fossil fuels, and deforestation. These things have caused global warming, soil erosion, poor air quality, and non-potable water. In your essay about the Earth, you can detail these negative impacts and how they can affect us, humans. 

The planet Earth’s formation remains a bizarre, scientific mystery. This is because we live on a planet in a solar system with seven other planets, and thousands of exoplanets have been discovered so far. However, the formation of planets like Earth is still a hotly debated topic. So, currently, there are only 2 leading theories about planetary formation – in your essay about the earth, look into this topic in more detail to share some exciting facts about the Earth with your readers. 

If you’re stuck picking your next essay topic, check out our guide on how to write a diverse essay.

If you’re still stuck, check out our general resource of essay writing topics .

Bryan Collins is the owner of Become a Writer Today. He's an author from Ireland who helps writers build authority and earn a living from their creative work. He's also a former Forbes columnist and his work has appeared in publications like Lifehacker and Fast Company.

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Essay on Earth: Check Samples for 100, 300 Words

• Updated on  
• Sep 27, 2023

Essay on Earth: Earth, our cherished celestial abode, is a marvel of the cosmos. It teems with life, boasts breathtaking landscapes, and endures the test of time. In this blog, we embark on a journey to explore the myriad facets of our planet, from its geological mysteries to the pressing challenges of preserving its ecological harmony.

This Blog Includes:

Earth’s geological history, earth’s climate, preserving earth’s sustainability, sample essay on earth in 100 words, sample essay on earth in 300 words.

Earth’s geological history spans eons, an epic tale told through rocks, fossils, and continents. It begins with the formation of our planet over 4.5 billion years ago, a violent birth amidst cosmic chaos. For billions of years, Earth underwent tumultuous transformations, from the fiery hell of its early years to the emergence of oceans and continents. 

Over time, life took root, evolving from simple organisms into the diverse array we know today. Plate tectonics, volcanic eruptions, and meteor impacts further shaped our world. Understanding Earth’s geological history not only unveils its past but also offers insights into its future and the importance of conservation.

Must Read: Essay On Waste Management

Earth’s climate is a complex interplay of atmospheric and oceanic dynamics that determine its weather patterns and long-term conditions. It encompasses a delicate balance of temperature, precipitation, and atmospheric composition, shaping the environments where life thrives. However, this equilibrium is now disrupted by human-induced climate change.

Human activities, primarily the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation, release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, trapping heat and causing global temperatures to rise. This shift is causing extreme weather events, rising sea levels, and disrupting ecosystems worldwide. Addressing this climate crisis is one of the most pressing challenges of our time, requiring collective action to mitigate its impacts.

Sustainability on Earth is the pivotal concept guiding our actions toward a harmonious coexistence with the planet. It revolves around responsible resource management, reducing waste, and respecting ecological limits. Sustainable practices encompass clean energy, conservation of biodiversity, and equitable access to resources, ensuring a resilient future.

Achieving sustainability is paramount in mitigating environmental crises, such as climate change and habitat loss. It demands global cooperation, conscious consumer choices, and innovative solutions. By embracing sustainability, we safeguard Earth’s precious ecosystems, secure resources for future generations, and preserve the beauty and diversity of our irreplaceable home.

Earth, our celestial home, is a testament to the grandeur of the cosmos. For over 4.5 billion years, it has nurtured life, from the simplest organisms to the diverse tapestry we witness today. Earth’s geological history reveals eons of transformation, while its climate sustains ecosystems across continents. However, our planet faces unprecedented challenges. Human actions, from pollution to deforestation, imperil the delicate balance of nature. The climate crisis threatens ecosystems and communities. Yet, Earth’s resilience offers hope. Through conservation, sustainable practices, and global cooperation, we can safeguard this precious orb, ensuring its enduring beauty for generations to come.

Must Read: Essay On Save Water 

Earth, our celestial abode, stands as a testament to the sublime beauty and intricate complexity of the cosmos. One of Earth’s most captivating aspects is its geological history, a narrative etched in the layers of rock, sediment, and fossils. From its tumultuous birth in a maelstrom of cosmic debris, our planet has evolved through epochs of geological transformation. Continents have shifted, mountain ranges have risen and eroded, and life has thrived and adapted. Exploring Earth’s geological history is like reading a captivating story, revealing the secrets of its past and the forces that have shaped its present landscapes.

Yet, Earth’s allure extends far beyond its geological marvels. Its climate, a symphony of atmospheric and oceanic interactions, creates diverse ecosystems that span the globe. From the lush rainforests of the Amazon to the stark beauty of polar ice caps, Earth’s climate has sculpted environments that support a dazzling array of life forms. The rhythm of seasons, the dance of wind and water, and the harmony of predator and prey are all part of this intricate tapestry.

However, as we celebrate Earth’s wonders, we must also confront the pressing challenges it faces today. Human activities, driven by industry and consumption, have led to environmental degradation on an unprecedented scale. Pollution chokes our air and water, while deforestation and habitat loss threaten countless species. Perhaps the most urgent challenge is the spectre of climate change, driven by the relentless emission of greenhouse gases. Rising temperatures, extreme weather events, and melting ice caps are stark reminders of the consequences.

Yet, in the face of these challenges, Earth displays its resilience. It offers hope that, through collective effort, we can restore the balance that sustains life. Conservation, sustainable practices, and international cooperation are the tools we possess to safeguard our cherished home. In conclusion, Earth is a treasure trove of geological wonders and ecological diversity.

Earth is called a “blue planet” because its surface is 70% water, giving it a predominantly blue appearance when seen from space.

Earth’s resources are depleting due to overexploitation, pollution, and unsustainable practices, threatening ecosystems, freshwater, minerals, and fossil fuels.

Write about Earth’s beauty, biodiversity, ecological balance, human impact, and the urgent need for conservation and sustainable practices.

We hope this blog gave you an idea about how to write and present an essay on Earth that puts forth your opinions. The skill of writing an essay comes in handy when appearing for standardized language tests. Thinking of taking one soon? Leverage Edu provides the best online test prep for the same via Leverage Live . Register today to know more!

Amisha Khushara

With a heart full of passion for writing, I pour my emotions into every piece I create. I strive to connect with readers on a personal level, infusing my work with authenticity and relatability. Writing isn't just a skill; it's my heartfelt expression to touch hearts and minds.

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Scientific researchers on a bat-collecting expedition in Sierra Leone. Photo by Simon Townley/Panos

There’s no planet B

The scientific evidence is clear: the only celestial body that can support us is the one we evolved with. here’s why.

by Arwen E Nicholson & Raphaëlle D Haywood   + BIO

At the start of the 22nd century, humanity left Earth for the stars. The enormous ecological and climatic devastation that had characterised the last 100 years had led to a world barren and inhospitable; we had used up Earth entirely. Rapid melting of ice caused the seas to rise, swallowing cities whole. Deforestation ravaged forests around the globe, causing widespread destruction and loss of life. All the while, we continued to burn the fossil fuels we knew to be poisoning us, and thus created a world no longer fit for our survival. And so we set our sights beyond Earth’s horizons to a new world, a place to begin again on a planet as yet untouched. But where are we going? What are our chances of finding the elusive planet B, an Earth-like world ready and waiting to welcome and shelter humanity from the chaos we created on the planet that brought us into being? We built powerful astronomical telescopes to search the skies for planets resembling our own, and very quickly found hundreds of Earth twins orbiting distant stars. Our home was not so unique after all. The universe is full of Earths!

This futuristic dream-like scenario is being sold to us as a real scientific possibility, with billionaires planning to move humanity to Mars in the near future. For decades, children have grown up with the daring movie adventures of intergalactic explorers and the untold habitable worlds they find. Many of the highest-grossing films are set on fictional planets, with paid advisors keeping the science ‘realistic’. At the same time, narratives of humans trying to survive on a post-apocalyptic Earth have also become mainstream.

Given all our technological advances, it’s tempting to believe we are approaching an age of interplanetary colonisation. But can we really leave Earth and all our worries behind? No. All these stories are missing what makes a planet habitable to us . What Earth-like means in astronomy textbooks and what it means to someone considering their survival prospects on a distant world are two vastly different things. We don’t just need a planet roughly the same size and temperature as Earth; we need a planet that spent billions of years evolving with us. We depend completely on the billions of other living organisms that make up Earth’s biosphere. Without them, we cannot survive. Astronomical observations and Earth’s geological record are clear: the only planet that can support us is the one we evolved with. There is no plan B. There is no planet B. Our future is here, and it doesn’t have to mean we’re doomed.

D eep down, we know this from instinct: we are happiest when immersed in our natural environment. There are countless examples of the healing power of spending time in nature . Numerous articles speak of the benefits of ‘forest bathing’; spending time in the woods has been scientifically shown to reduce stress, anxiety and depression, and to improve sleep quality, thus nurturing both our physical and mental health. Our bodies instinctively know what we need: the thriving and unique biosphere that we have co-evolved with, that exists only here, on our home planet.

There is no planet B. These days, everyone is throwing around this catchy slogan. Most of us have seen it inscribed on an activist’s homemade placard, or heard it from a world leader. In 2014, the United Nations’ then secretary general Ban Ki-moon said: ‘There is no plan B because we do not have [a] planet B.’ The French president Emmanuel Macron echoed him in 2018 in his historical address to US Congress. There’s even a book named after it. The slogan gives strong impetus to address our planetary crisis. However, no one actually explains why there isn’t another planet we could live on, even though the evidence from Earth sciences and astronomy is clear. Gathering this observation-based information is essential to counter an increasingly popular but flawed narrative that the only way to ensure our survival is to colonise other planets.

The best-case scenario for terraforming Mars leaves us with an atmosphere we are incapable of breathing

The most common target of such speculative dreaming is our neighbour Mars. It is about half the size of Earth and receives about 40 per cent of the heat that we get from the Sun. From an astronomer’s perspective, Mars is Earth’s identical twin. And Mars has been in the news a lot lately, promoted as a possible outpost for humanity in the near future . While human-led missions to Mars seem likely in the coming decades, what are our prospects of long-term habitation on Mars? Present-day Mars is a cold, dry world with a very thin atmosphere and global dust storms that can last for weeks on end. Its average surface pressure is less than 1 per cent of Earth’s. Surviving without a pressure suit in such an environment is impossible. The dusty air mostly consists of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) and the surface temperature ranges from a balmy 30ºC (86ºF) in the summer, down to -140ºC (-220ºF) in the winter; these extreme temperature changes are due to the thin atmosphere on Mars.

Despite these clear challenges, proposals for terraforming Mars into a world suitable for long-term human habitation abound. Mars is further from the Sun than Earth, so it would require significantly more greenhouse gases to achieve a temperature similar to Earth’s. Thickening the atmosphere by releasing CO 2 in the Martian surface is the most popular ‘solution’ to the thin atmosphere on Mars. However, every suggested method of releasing the carbon stored in Mars requires technology and resources far beyond what we are currently capable of. What’s more, a recent NASA study determined that there isn’t even enough CO 2 on Mars to warm it sufficiently.

Even if we could find enough CO 2 , we would still be left with an atmosphere we couldn’t breathe. Earth’s atmosphere contains only 0.04 per cent CO 2 , and we cannot tolerate an atmosphere high in CO 2 . For an atmosphere with Earth’s atmospheric pressure, CO 2 levels as high as 1 per cent can cause drowsiness in humans, and once we reach levels of 10 per cent CO 2 , we will suffocate even if there is abundant oxygen. The proposed absolute best-case scenario for terraforming Mars leaves us with an atmosphere we are incapable of breathing; and achieving it is well beyond our current technological and economic capabilities.

Instead of changing the atmosphere of Mars, a more realistic scenario might be to build habitat domes on its surface with internal conditions suitable for our survival. However, there would be a large pressure difference between the inside of the habitat and the outside atmosphere. Any breach in the habitat would rapidly lead to depressurisation as the breathable air escapes into the thin Martian atmosphere. Any humans living on Mars would have to be on constant high alert for any damage to their building structures, and suffocation would be a daily threat.

F rom an astronomical perspective, Mars is Earth’s twin; and yet, it would take vast resources, time and effort to transform it into a world that wouldn’t be capable of providing even the bare minimum of what we have on Earth. Suggesting that another planet could become an escape from our problems on Earth suddenly seems absurd. But are we being pessimistic? Do we just need to look further afield?

Next time you are out on a clear night, look up at the stars and choose one – you are more likely than not to pick one that hosts planets. Astronomical observations today confirm our age-old suspicion that all stars have their own planetary systems. As astronomers, we call these exoplanets. What are exoplanets like? Could we make any of them our home?

The majority of exoplanets discovered to date were found by NASA’s Kepler mission, which monitored the brightness of 100,000 stars over four years, looking for dips in a star’s light as a planet obscures it each time it completes an orbit around it.

Kepler observed more than 900 Earth-sized planets with a radius up to 1.25 times that of our world. These planets could be rocky (for the majority of them, we haven’t yet determined their mass, so we can only make this inference based on empirical relations between planetary mass and radius). Of these 900 or so Earth-sized planets, 23 are in the habitable zone. The habitable zone is the range of orbits around a star where a planet can be considered temperate : the planet’s surface can support liquid water (provided there is sufficient atmospheric pressure), a key ingredient of life as we know it. The concept of the habitable zone is very useful because it depends on just two astrophysical parameters that are relatively easy to measure: the distance of the planet to its parent star, and the star’s temperature. It’s worth keeping in mind that the astronomical habitable zone is a very simple concept and, in reality, there are many more factors at play in the emergence of life; for example, this concept does not consider plate tectonics , which are thought to be crucial to sustain life on Earth.

Planets with similar observable properties to Earth are very common: at least one in 10 stars hosts them

How many Earth-sized, temperate planets are there in our galaxy? Since we have discovered only a handful of these planets so far, it is still quite difficult to estimate their number. Current estimates of the frequency of Earth-sized planets rely on extrapolating measured occurrence rates of planets that are slightly bigger and closer to their parent star, as those are easier to detect. The studies are primarily based on observations from the Kepler mission, which surveyed more than 100,000 stars in a systematic fashion. These stars are all located in a tiny portion of the entire sky; so, occurrence rate studies assume that this part of the sky is representative of the full galaxy. These are all reasonable assumptions for the back-of-the-envelope estimate that we are about to make.

Several different teams carried out their own analyses and, on average, they found that roughly one in three stars (30 per cent) hosts an Earth-sized, temperate planet. The most pessimistic studies found a rate of 9 per cent, which is about one in 10 stars, and the studies with the most optimistic results found that virtually all stars host at least one Earth-sized, temperate planet, and potentially even several of them.

At first sight, this looks like a huge range in values; but it’s worth taking a step back and realising that we had absolutely no constraints whatsoever on this number just 20 years ago. Whether there are other planets similar to Earth is a question that we’ve been asking for millennia, and this is the very first time that we are able to answer it based on actual observations. Before the Kepler mission, we had no idea whether we would find Earth-sized, temperate planets around one in 10, or one in a million stars. Now we know that planets with similar observable properties to Earth are very common: at least one in 10 stars hosts these kinds of planets.

Let’s now use these numbers to predict the number of Earth-sized, temperate planets in our entire galaxy. For this, let’s take the average estimate of 30 per cent, or roughly one in three stars. Our galaxy hosts approximately 300 billion stars, which adds up to 90 billion roughly Earth-sized, roughly temperate planets. This is a huge number, and it can be very tempting to think that at least one of these is bound to look exactly like Earth.

One issue to consider is that other worlds are at unimaginable distances from us. Our neighbour Mars is on average 225 million kilometres (about 140 million miles) away. Imagine a team of astronauts travelling in a vehicle similar to NASA’s robotic New Horizons probe, one of humankind’s fastest spacecrafts – which flew by Pluto in 2015. With New Horizons’ top speed of around 58,000 kph, it would take at least 162 days to reach Mars. Beyond our solar system, the closest star to us is Proxima Centauri, at a distance of 40 trillion kilometres. Going in the same space vehicle, it would take our astronaut crew 79,000 years to reach planets that might exist around our nearest stellar neighbour.

S till, let’s for a moment optimistically imagine that we find a perfect Earth twin: a planet that really is exactly like Earth. Let’s imagine that some futuristic form of technology exists, ready to whisk us away to this new paradise. Keen to explore our new home, we eagerly board our rocket, but on landing we soon feel uneasy. Where is the land? Why is the ocean green and not blue? Why is the sky orange and thick with haze? Why are our instruments detecting no oxygen in the atmosphere? Was this not supposed to be a perfect twin of Earth?

As it turns out, we have landed on a perfect twin of the Archean Earth, the aeon during which life first emerged on our home world. This new planet is certainly habitable: lifeforms are floating around the green, iron-rich oceans, breathing out methane that is giving the sky that unsettling hazy, orange colour. This planet sure is habitable – just not to us . It has a thriving biosphere with plenty of life, but not life like ours. In fact, we would have been unable to survive on Earth for around 90 per cent of its history; the oxygen-rich atmosphere that we depend on is a recent feature of our planet.

The earliest part of our planet’s history, known as the Hadean aeon, begins with the formation of the Earth. Named after the Greek underworld due to our planet’s fiery beginnings, the early Hadean would have been a terrible place with molten lava oceans and an atmosphere of vaporised rock. Next came the Archean aeon, beginning 4 billion years ago, when the first life on Earth flourished. But, as we just saw, the Archean would be no home for a human. The world where our earliest ancestors thrived would kill us in an instant. After the Archean came the Proterozoic, 2.5 billion years ago. In this aeon, there was land, and a more familiar blue ocean and sky. What’s more, oxygen finally began to accumulate in the atmosphere. But let’s not get too excited: the level of oxygen was less than 10 per cent of what we have today. The air would still have been impossible for us to breathe. This time also experienced global glaciation events known as snowball Earths, where ice covered the globe from poles to equator for millions of years at a time. Earth has spent more of its time fully frozen than the length of time that we humans have existed.

We would have been incapable of living on our planet for most of its existence

Earth’s current aeon, the Phanerozoic, began only around 541 million years ago with the Cambrian explosion – a period of time when life rapidly diversified. A plethora of life including the first land plants, dinosaurs and the first flowering plants all appeared during this aeon. It is only within this aeon that our atmosphere became one that we can actually breathe. This aeon has also been characterised by multiple mass extinction events that wiped out as much as 90 per cent of all species over short periods of time. The factors that brought on such devastation are thought to be a combination of large asteroid impacts, and volcanic, chemical and climate changes occurring on Earth at the time. From the point of view of our planet, the changes leading to these mass extinctions are relatively minor. However, for lifeforms at the time, such changes shattered their world and very often led to their complete extinction.

Looking at Earth’s long history, we find that we would have been incapable of living on our planet for most of its existence. Anatomically modern humans emerged less than 400,000 years ago; we have been around for less than 0.01 per cent of the Earth’s story. The only reason we find Earth habitable now is because of the vast and diverse biosphere that has for hundreds of millions of years evolved with and shaped our planet into the home we know today. Our continued survival depends on the continuation of Earth’s present state without any nasty bumps along the way. We are complex lifeforms with complex needs. We are entirely dependent on other organisms for all our food and the very air we breathe. The collapse of Earth’s ecosystems is the collapse of our life-support systems. Replicating everything Earth offers us on another planet, on timescales of a few human lifespans, is simply impossible.

Some argue that we need to colonise other planets to ensure the future of the human race. In 5 billion years, our Sun, a middle-aged star, will become a red giant, expanding in size and possibly engulfing Earth. In 1 billion years, the gradual warming of our Sun is predicted to cause Earth’s oceans to boil away. While this certainly sounds worrying, 1 billion years is a long, long time. A billion years ago, Earth’s landmasses formed the supercontinent Rodinia, and life on Earth consisted in single-celled and small multicellular organisms. No plants or animals yet existed. The oldest Homo sapiens remains date from 315,000 years ago, and until 12,000 years ago all humans lived as hunter-gatherers.

The industrial revolution happened less than 500 years ago. Since then, human activity in burning fossil fuels has been rapidly changing the climate, threatening human lives and damaging ecosystems across the globe. Without rapid action, human-caused climate change is predicted to have devastating global consequences within the next 50 years. This is the looming crisis that humanity must focus on. If we can’t learn to work within the planetary system that we evolved with, how do we ever hope to replicate these deep processes on another planet? Considering how different human civilisations are today from even 5,000 years ago, worrying about a problem that humans may have to tackle in a billion years is simply absurd. It would be far simpler to go back in time and ask the ancient Egyptians to invent the internet there and then. It’s also worth considering that many of the attitudes towards space colonisation are worryingly close to the same exploitative attitudes that have led us to the climate crisis we now face.

Earth is the home we know and love not because it is Earth-sized and temperate. No, we call this planet our home thanks to its billion-year-old relationship with life. Just as people are shaped not only by their genetics, but by their culture and relationships with others, planets are shaped by the living organisms that emerge and thrive on them. Over time, Earth has been dramatically transformed by life into a world where we, humans, can prosper. The relationship works both ways: while life shapes its planet, the planet shapes its life. Present-day Earth is our life-support system, and we cannot live without it.

While Earth is currently our only example of a living planet, it is now within our technological reach to potentially find signs of life on other worlds. In the coming decades, we will likely answer the age-old question: are we alone in the Universe? Finding evidence for alien life promises to shake the foundations of our understanding of our own place in the cosmos. But finding alien life does not mean finding another planet that we can move to. Just as life on Earth has evolved with our planet over billions of years, forming a deep, unique relationship that makes the world we see today, any alien life on a distant planet will have a similarly deep and unique bond with its own planet. We can’t expect to be able to crash the party and find a warm welcome.

Living on a warming Earth presents many challenges. But these pale in comparison with the challenges of converting Mars, or any other planet, into a viable alternative. Scientists study Mars and other planets to better understand how Earth and life formed and evolved, and how they shape each other. We look to worlds beyond our horizons to better understand ourselves. In searching the Universe, we are not looking for an escape to our problems: Earth is our unique and only home in the cosmos. There is no planet B.

The cell is not a factory

Scientific narratives project social hierarchies onto nature. That’s why we need better metaphors to describe cellular life

Charudatta Navare

Anthropology

Societies of perpetual movement

Why do hunter-gatherers refuse to be sedentary? New answers are emerging from the depths of the Congolese rainforest

Cecilia Padilla-Iglesias

Neuroscience

Rethinking the homunculus

When we discovered that the brain contained a map of the body it revolutionised neuroscience. But it’s time for an update

Moheb Costandi

Science must become attuned to the subtle conversations that pervade all life, from the primordial to the present

David Waltner-Toews

History of technology

Indexing the information age

Over a weekend in 1995, a small group gathered in Ohio to unleash the power of the internet by making it navigable

Monica Westin

Animals and humans

Ant geopolitics

Over the past four centuries quadrillions of ants have created a strange and turbulent global society that shadows our own

John Whitfield

Short Essay on Our Planet Earth [100, 200, 400 words] With PDF

Earth is the only planet that sustains life and ecosystems. In this lesson, you will learn to write essays in three different sets on the planet earth to help you in preparing for your upcoming examinations.

Short Essay on Our Planet Earth in 100 Words

Earth is a rare planet since it is the only one that can support life. On Earth, life is possible for various reasons, the most essential of which are the availability of water and the presence of oxygen. Earth is a member of the Solar System. The Earth, along with the other seven planets, orbits the Sun.

One spin takes approximately twenty-four hours, and one revolution takes 365 days and four hours. Day and night, as well as the changing of seasons, occurs due to rotation and revolution. However, we have jeopardized our planet by our sheer ignorance and negligence. We must practise conservation of resources and look after mother earth while we have time.

Short Essay on Our Planet Earth in 200 Words

Earth is a blue planet that is special from the rest of the planets because it is the only one to sustain life. The availability of water and oxygen are two of the most crucial factors that make life possible on Earth. The Earth rotates around the Sun, along with seven other planets in the solar system. It takes 24 hours to complete one rotation, and approximately 365 days and 4 hours to complete one revolution. Day and night, as well as changing seasons, are all conceivable due to these two movements. 

However, we are wasting and taking advantage of the natural resources that have been bestowed upon us. Overuse and exploitation of all-natural resources produce pollution to such an alarming degree that life on Earth is on the verge of extinction. The depletion of the ozone layer has resulted in global warming. The melting of glaciers has resulted in rising temperatures.

Many animals have become extinct or are endangered. To protect the environment, we must work together. Conversation, resource reduction, reuse, and recycling will take us a long way toward restoring the natural ecosystem. We are as unique as our home planet. We have superior intelligence, which we must employ for the benefit of all living beings. The Earth is our natural home, and we must create a place that is as good as, if not better than, paradise.

Short Essay on Our Planet Earth in 400 Words

Earth is a unique planet as it is the only planet that sustains life. Life is possible on Earth because of many reasons, and the most important among them is the availability of water and oxygen. Earth is a part of the family of the Sun. It belongs to the Solar System.

Earth, along with seven other planets, revolves around the Sun. It takes roughly twenty-four hours to complete one rotation and 365 days and 4 hours to complete one revolution. Rotation and revolution make day and night and change of seasons simultaneously possible. The five seasons we experience in one revolution are Spring, Summer, Monsoon, Autumn, and Winter.

However, we are misusing resources and exploiting the natural gifts that have been so heavily endowed upon us. Overuse and misuse of all the natural resources are causing pollution to such an extent that it has become alarming to the point of destruction. The most common form of pollution caused upon the earth by us is Air Pollution, Land Pollution, Water Pollution, and Noise Pollution.

This, in turn, had resulted in Ozone Layer Depletion and Global Warming. Due to ozone layer depletion, there harmful ultraviolet rays of the sun are reaching the earth. It, in turn, is melting glaciers and causing a rise in temperature every year. Many animals have either extinct or are endangered due to human activities.

Some extinct animals worldwide are Sabre-toothed Cat, Woolly Mammoth, Dodo, Great Auk, Stellers Sea Cow, Tasmanian Tiger, Passenger Pigeon, Pyrenean Ibex. The extinct animals in the Indian subcontinent are the Indian Cheetah, pink-headed duck, northern Sumatran rhinoceros, and Sunderban dwarf rhinoceros.

The endangered animals that are in need of our immediate attention in India are Royal Bengal Tiger, Snow leopard, Red panda, Indian rhinoceros, Nilgiri tahr, Asiatic lion, Ganges river dolphin, Gharial and Hangul, among others. We have exploited fossil fuels to such an extent that now we run the risk of using them completely. We must switch to alternative sources of energy that are nature friendly. Solar power, windmills, hydra power should be used more often, and deforestation must be made illegal worldwide.

We must come together to preserve the natural environment. Conversation, reduction, reuse and recycling of the resources will take us a long way in rebuilding the natural habitat. We are as unique as our planet earth. We have higher intelligence, and we must use it for the well-being of all living organisms. The Earth is our natural abode, and we must make a place as close to Paradise, if not better.

Hopefully, after going through this lesson, you have a holistic idea about our planet Earth. I have tried to cover every aspect that makes it unique and the reasons to practise conversation of natural resources. If you still have any doubts regarding this session, kindly let me know through the comment section below. To read more such essays on many important topics, keep browsing our website. 

Join us on Telegram to get the latest updates on our upcoming sessions. Thank you, see you again soon.

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Essay on Save Earth for Students and Children

500+ words essay on save earth.

Earth and the resources of earth make life possible on it. If we were to imagine our lives without these resources, that would not be possible. As life cannot function without sunshine , air, vegetation , and water . However, this is soon going to be our reality if we do not save the earth now.

The resources earth provides us with are limited. They are blessings which we do not count. Human has become selfish and is utilizing the earth’s resources at a rapid rate. We need to protect them in order to protect our lives. This is so because man and all living organisms depend on the earth for their survival.

It is The Need of the Hour

To say that saving the earth is the need of the hour would be an understatement. All the activities of humans driven by greed and selfishness have caused immense damage to the earth. It is degraded it beyond repair. Almost all the natural resources are now polluted due to these activities.

When all these resources will be under threat, naturally lives of all living organisms will be under peril. This is why we need to save the earth at all costs. All the other issues are secondary and saving the earth is the main concern. For when the earth will not remain, the other issues will go away automatically.

Earth is the only planet which can sustain life on it. We do not have a planet B which we can move onto. This makes it all the more serious to save the earth and save our lives. If we do not take strict actions now, we will lose the chance of seeing our future generations flourish forever. Everyone must come together for the same causes, as we are inhabitants of this planet firstly and then anything else.

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How to Save Earth

As all human activities are impacting the lives of other organisms, humans only need to take steps to protect the earth and its resources. A little effort will go a long way on everyone’s end. Each action will make a difference. For instance, if one man decides to stop drinking bottled water, thousands of plastic can be saved from consuming.

Furthermore, we can start by planting more trees to make up for the deforestation that is happening these days at a rapid rate. When we plant more trees, ecological balance can be restored and we can improve the quality of life.

Similarly, we must stop wasting water. When done on individual levels, this will create a huge impact on conserving water. We must not pollute our water bodies by dumping waste in it. It is essential to save water most importantly as it is running out rapidly.

In short, the government and individuals must come together to save the earth. We can make people aware of the consequences of not saving the earth. They can be taught ways and how they can contribute to saving the earth. If all this collective effort starts happening, we can surely save our planet earth and make brighter earth.

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'The future of life on Earth lies in the balance' – a picture essay

Almost 600 conservation experts have signed a letter by the wildlife charity WWF, published to coincide with UN report into loss of biodiversity

Almost 600 conservation experts have signed the Call4Nature open letter written by wildlife charity WWF, which is being published to coincide with the IPBES report (see letter below).

Overfishing

“We are overfishing our oceans at an alarming rate and choking them with plastic and other pollutants. If we want to see healthy seas that will continue to provide us with food, we need to stop this over-exploitation, protect our incredible marine environments and make sustainable fishing the norm, as we see here.” Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, chef and vice- president of Fauna and Flora International

A boat fishing for bluefin tuna in the Mediterranean Sea, which is only allowed for one month a year, from 15 May to 15 June

“I spent a month on a bluefin fishing boat and from what I have seen all the ICCAT (International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna) regulations were respected. Fishermen I talked with seemed to have developed an environmental awareness – at least they understand the importance of keeping the bluefin protected from overfishing, in order to continue fishing and making a living out of it.” Antonio Busiello, photographer

Deforestation

“Every year millions of hectares of pristine tropical rainforest are lost for the production of beef, soy, timber and palm oil. These magnificent forests store huge amounts of carbon and are home to some of our planet’s greatest wildlife. Their protection is critical to stop runaway climate change and halt the sixth mass extinction.” Jack Harries, film-maker activist and WWF ambassador

Elephants walk through an oil palm plantation and eat the trunks of felled old oil palm trees at Sabah Softwoods in Sabah, Borneo, Indonesia

“I had very mixed emotions when taking this image. I was struck with a sense of sadness at seeing the elephants in a seemingly unnatural environment for them. Equally, I was taken aback by watching them use this environment to their advantage as a food source, and the efforts of plantation owners to create wildlife corridors within their plantations to enable elephants to travel to connecting forest areas. I feel that it really highlights the threats that the species faces, yet also demonstrates the resilience they have to being able to adapt to a changing landscape.” Chris Ratcliffe, photographer

Wildlife trade

“The world is waking up to the fact that pangolins are facing extinction as a result of the illegal wildlife trade. Sadly, their natural defence is a gift to traffickers. When threatened they roll into a tight ball. This protects them from predators in the wild, but enables criminals to transport them with ease, just like footballs. To save these remarkable creatures, we need to spread the word and push to stop this illegal trade.” Paul De Ornellas, chief wildlife adviser at WWF

One of the ‘pangolin men’ of Zimbabwe, volunteers who spend their lives rehabilitating the animals after being rescued from poachers

“The man in this photo tends to this pangolin every day, ensuring its rehabilitation after being seized in anti-poaching operations. The image reflects the weight of human responsibility involved in the species and our world’s tomorrow. What we do to the animals we will end up doing to ourselves. Our very futures are intertwined for ever.” Adrian Stern, photographer

Plastic pollution

“Nature is our life support system and without it our lives on this earth would be impossible and unimaginable. We have to stop seeing the natural world as something to be exploited and taken for granted. Nature matters to me and it should matter to you. We need to put more value on our natural assets and stop destroying our precious planet.” Chris Packham, TV presenter, naturalist and founder of Wild Justice

A gannet hangs from a cliff, entangled in plastic fibres at RSPB Grassholm Island, Wales, UK

“Just eight miles off the Welsh mainland, RSPB Grassholm Island should be a paradise for gannets, but in recent years it has become a living hell . I visited the island with a rescue team, who visit each year to cut free the entangled birds. This panicked adult gannet struggled as it dangled from a cliffside, with ropes twisted around its neck like a hangman’s noose. The brave volunteers risked their own lives to creep to the edge of the clifftop and rescue this bird from its death sentence.” Sam Hobson, photographer

Land degradation

“Humankind has already seriously altered three-quarters of Earth’s land surfaces – with no hint of respite. If we are truly to live within the sustainable bounds of our extraordinary planet and leave the space for nature that it so desperately needs, we have to step back and be more considerate about the way we treat our world. More than that, we must actively work to repair the blatant damage we have done. And we have to do that immediately; starting today.” Mark Wright, director of science at WWF

“Trucks the size of a house look like tiny toys as they rumble along massive roads in a section of a mine. The largest of their kind, these 400 ton-capacity dump trucks are 47.5ft long, 32.5ft wide, and 25ft high. Within their dimensions you could build a 3,000 sq ft home. The scale of what we see in this image is truly unfathomable. It’s been reported that the landscape being industrialised by Tar Sands development could easily accommodate one Florida, two New Brunswicks, four Vancouvers, and four Vancouver Islands.” Garth Lenz, photographer

Polar ice cap melting

“The Arctic is in meltdown – it is warming over twice as fast as the global average. Climate change means that walrus, polar bears and people may soon face an ice-free Arctic ocean during the summer, unless we take urgent action now. Though it may seem remote, the impacts felt in the Arctic are not limited to national borders … Nature is crying out for help in every corner of the planet, and it is time for us to listen before we lose the wonders we take for granted.” Rod Downie, chief polar adviser at WWF

Waterfalls cascades in to the sea from the Austfonna polar ice cap on Nordaustlandet in the Svalbard archipelago, Norway

“I found the image I wanted whilst leading an expedition to Svalbard.The holy grail is to get the waterfalls from it, like we see in the image, a natural phenomenon that only used to occur in the warmest few weeks of the arctic summer. Not now. In recent years I’ve seen the waterfalls at times of the season when I’ve never expected to. And not just one or two waterfalls but many. This dramatic difference is a warning of things to come and one I was determined to record.” Andy Rouse, photographer

Freshwater habitats

“River dolphin populations in Asia are plummeting due to human activities such as dam building, fishing, boat traffic and pollution. We cannot allow that to happen to one of the Amazon’s most charismatic mammals. We need to act fast to save this species and avoid the fate of the baiji, the first river dolphin species driven to extinction by humans. Our freshwater habitats – including lakes, rivers and wetlands – are the most threatened of all our global habitats. We know that populations of freshwater species have suffered huge declines since 1970 - falling an average of 83%. That’s a staggering and depressing figure. Our rivers and streams are the blue arteries of our world. Without thriving freshwater habitats, our planet will not survive.” Damian Fleming, director of conservation at WWF

Federico Mosquera, endangered species coordinator from Omacha Foundation, a Colombian non-profit working in wildlife conservation issues, with a captured Amazon River Dolphin

“Federico Mosquera soothes a recently captured Amazon river dolphin, the first of its kind to be tagged with a GPS tracker. Amazon river dolphins are extremely tactile animals and direct contact seems to have a calming effect.

In 2017, WWF Bolivia, Brazil, and Colombia coordinated a tri-national effort to tag and study Amazon river dolphins, applying satellite GPS technology in a ground-breaking project, to better understand river dolphin health and migratory patterns.

Many net casts were unsuccessfully and the exhaustion and despair were starting to take a toll on the team until finally, on the sixth day, they managed to successfully tag one dolphin. Only after the dolphin was released, did they allow themselves to explode in joy and tears.

It was a memorable moment and I believe this image captures very well the profound respect that Federico, the team’s leading biologist, has for this species of dolphins and the immense pressure that he was under during the project. It also symbolises the intimate connection that we have with wildlife.” Jaime Rojo, photographer

Wildlife corridors

“Tigers can travel over 100km to establish their own territories, so these connecting habitats are critical for wild tiger population recovery, and to help achieve the global goal to double the number of wild tigers by 2022, from as few as 3,200 in 2010. However, they are under pressure from habitat loss and poaching. It’s crucial that we do all we can to maintain and connect their habitats, and protect tigers from being hunted. We are seeing tiger populations recover in areas where this is happening, which gives us great hope of protecting these incredible creatures for the future.” Rebecca May, tiger conservation manager at WWF

A wild tiger is captured on a camera trap in corridor eight one of a series of dedicated wildlife corridors between the National Parks of Bhutan

“When I look at this image , I can’t help thinking that we live in an incredible planet. All in this image is the result of millions of years of evolution, of work, to make it as perfect as it is. It reveals another world, unknown to most humans, something more beautiful and jaw-dropping than any science fiction movie. It makes me want to fight twice as hard to stop the current madness of the world.” Emmanuel Rondeau, photographer

The Call4Nature letter

Dear world leaders Nature provides us with the food we eat, the air we breathe and the water we drink. We depend on it to grow our crops, to source our medicines, to house us and to clothe us. When we destroy nature, we destroy the essentials on which we all depend. Today IPBES (Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, www.ipbes.net) – the independent global scientific body on biodiversity of more than 130 governments – publishes its report on the current state of life on Earth. The report paints an alarming picture of species extinctions, wildlife population declines, habitat loss and depletion of ecosystem services − adding to the existing wealth of evidence that we are losing nature at a dramatic and unsustainable rate. The report also makes clear the cause of this destruction: us. We are cutting down our forests, overfishing our seas, polluting our rivers, degrading our soils and changing our climate. This poses an urgent threat to all life on Earth – including ourselves. There is still time to protect what is left and to start restoring nature. But to do that, we must radically change the way we live, including how we use energy to power our societies, grow our food, and manage our waste. This is an immense task but many of the solutions are already at hand. Each of us has a role to play in bringing about this transformational change. But we need you, our political leaders, to lead − and to set us on a path to a future where people and nature thrive. Next year, there is an unmissable opportunity to choose a new direction for people and the planet. Important global decisions will be made on biodiversity, climate change and sustainable development at a series of UN meetings in 2020. Together, these form an action plan for change, a real New Deal for nature and people. But for this to happen, we need decisive and ambitious action from you. That’s why today: We call on you to stop funding activities that destroy nature. We call on you to put an end to deforestation and land degradation. We call on you to protect our oceans and marine life, especially against plastics. We call on you to encourage the transition to sustainable agricultural practices. We call on you to implement the Paris Agreement to halt climate change. The future of all life on Earth lies in the balance. We urge you to act now.

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Essay On Earth – 10 Lines, Short And Long Essay For Kids

• Key Points To Remember When Writing An Essay On Earth For Lower Primary Classes
• 5 Lines On The Earth For Children
• 10 Lines On The Earth For Kids
• A Paragraph On Earth For Children
• Short Essay On Earth In English For Kids
• Long Essay On Earth In English For Children

Amazing Facts About Earth For Kids

• What Will Your Child Learn From The Essay On Earth?

The Earth plays a vital role in our lives. It provides us with habitat, water, food, etc. The Earth came into existence millions of years ago, and there have been billions of animals and humans that have walked the same Earth as we do now. The Earth is home to over 5 million species of plants and animals, most of which have still not been identified or recorded. Essay on Earth in English is a common subject in schools as it is an important topic for children to think about and discuss. The Earth can be studied and written about in many different ways; you can write about it in terms of climate change, species, land formation, water composition and even the formation of the solar system and Earth’s position in it. The possibilities are endless! Here, we will discuss essay on Earth for class 1, 2 & 3 for kids.

Key Points To Remember When Writing An Essay On Earth For Lower Primary Classes 

Essay writing is an important skill that children must excel at as it helps them in life. Making their foundations strong helps to develop their skills and focus on improving the content of their essays. While writing essays, there are a few key points that one must remember –

• The language must be simple and comprehensible. 
• Teach words and sentences that your child understands and will be able to write when not assisted. 
• Focus on the very basics, as this is for a lower primary class; children aren’t expected to write in detail.  
• A good place to start would be what the Earth means to us as humans. What the Earth provides us with.  
• Take care of the format of the essay. If in paragraph form, ensure that each paragraph is neither too short nor too long. 
• Be clear about the direction of the essay in the beginning to ensure consistency. 
• Keeping track of the word limit is key. 

5 Lines On The Earth For Children 

For young children, we will stick to the very basics in this form of the essay. We will note down five basic points about the Earth we live on. We will progressively increase the intensity.  

• The Earth orbits the Sun, which is the centre of our Solar System. 
• Earth is the 3rd planet in our Solar System out of eight in total. 
• It is the only planet which supports life. 
• It has both land and water bodies. 
• It has rivers, valleys, mountains, hills, forests, oceans, plains and beaches.  

10 Lines On The Earth For Kids 

Now that we have some basics laid down, we can start adding more details. If we closely observe the essay lines above, we can see the flow of information. We start off with the position of the Earth in the Solar System and then come down to the geographical features of the Earth. Now, we can go into more detail for an essay for class 1 and 2.

Here’s how to describe Earth in a few lines –

• Our Earth is located in the Milky Way galaxy. 
• The Sun is the centre of the Solar System, with eight planets revolving around it. 
• Earth is the 3rd planet from the Sun, and it has one Moon. 
• It is the only planet in our Solar System which is suitable for sustaining life. 
• The composition of the Earth’s surface is 70% water and only 30% land. 
• Water bodies such as oceans, rivers, lakes, glaciers and seas make up 70% of the water content on Earth. 
• Landforms such as mountains, hills, plateaus and plains are the four major types of land we see on Earth. 
• The water bodies are home to aquatic animals such as fishes of different species and mammals, crustaceans, reptiles and more.
• Landforms are home to plants, vertebrates, and invertebrates such as lizards, elephants, eagles, sunflowers, and of course, us humans! 
• The Earth provides land and aquatic animals with food, water and shelter. We would not have existed without the Earth! 

A Paragraph On Earth For Children 

Now that we are comfortable with writing essays (information) in a numeric form, we can move along to writing essays in paragraph form. Below is a short paragraph on Earth.

Millions of years ago, the Earth was formed in one small corner of the galaxy named the Milky Way. The Big Bang caused the formation of the Sun, eight planets, their moons, and other bodies, such as dwarf planets (Pluto!). The Earth is the only planet in our Solar System which could sustain life. This is due to its strategic position; it is not too close to the Sun, nor is it too far away from the Sun. This, coupled with the right elements, allowed landforms and water bodies to form. This, in turn, supported the evolution of life on Earth. Indeed, the Earth is one of a kind! 

Short Essay On Earth In English For Kids 

Moving on to a slightly longer form of essay, we can start adding in more information and maybe even add paragraphs. Since you have limited words, be choosy about what you wish to write and what you wish to omit. Below is an essay for class 1, 2 and 3 on Earth.

The Milky Way galaxy is home to many stars, planets and planetary systems. One such planetary system is our Solar System. Our Solar System has eight planets, of which Earth is the fourth. The Earth rotates on its axis, which causes days and nights. It also revolves around the Sun in a fixed orbit, which causes the change in seasons.

The strategic position and movement of the Earth support the millions of species of plants and animals that inhabit it. The right elements and external forces allowed the formation of land and water bodies which provide homes and nutrients to the millions of species on the planet.

Water bodies such as oceans, rivers and lakes are homes to aquatic animals like fishes, whales and sea horses. Landforms are home to plants, animals and insects. However, in more recent times, we humans have been overusing our resources as well as polluting the environment, which is negatively affecting the planet and our co-habitants. We must strive to save the planet now before it is too late. 

Long Essay On Earth In English For Children 

Lastly, we will discuss and look at long-form essay for class 3. Since we have more words to play with, we can start going in-depth and look at specific topics. We can also add sub-heads and paragraph breaks. We will first start with an introduction, followed by the subheads.

The Earth is unique. It is indeed one of a kind. When the Big Bang occurred, the right elements, temperature and pressure (among other factors) created the Earth. Subsequently, the topography and the organisms emerged. Years of evolution have brought us to today, where we can study and understand not only the Earth but also other planets and galaxies.  

What Is Earth? 

The word ‘Earth’ is a Germanic word which simply means “the ground.” Earth is the only planet known that homes and nurtures living organisms such as ourselves. It is the fifth largest planet in our Solar System. It is also the only planet which has water on its surface. About 71% of the Earth’s surface is water, while the remaining 29% is land. It has one natural satellite, the Moon. 

Origin Of The Planet Earth 

The beginning of our Universe was the Big Bang. It was too hot, but it slowly cooled down. Different particles started bumping into each other, eventually forming common elements. Our solar system was formed roughly 8.7 years after the Big Bang. All solar systems begin in the same way – from Nebulas. Collapsing of dust and gas molecules within the nebulae causes the formation of planets and stars. The gravitational pull comes into action here and pulls the gas molecules and dust particles together. As these particles increase in size, the attraction between the molecules increases. This eventually forms a planet. However, the planet was still too hot to sustain life. Eventually, the planet began cooling down. The oceans are where the origin of life occurred. Slowly, evolution caused organisms to move onto land too. Over millions of years, the Earth has gone through many cycles of heating up and cooling down. This has resulted in mass extinctions and the wipeout of civilizations and organisms. However, planet Earth has managed to give birth to new organisms and help them evolve every single time. 

Different Layers Of The Earth 

The Earth is made up of three layers – The Crust, The Mantle and The Core 

1. The Crust  

This is the outer-most part of the Earth. It is mostly made up of solid rock and minerals. It is about 40km in thickness and is only 1% of the Earth’s mass. However, this part of the Earth harbours all known life in the Universe.  

2. The Mantle 

This is the middle part of the Earth. It is about 2900kms in thickness, and it consists of hot, dense, iron and magnesium-rich solid rock. The Crust and the Mantle make up the lithosphere, which is broken into plates, both large and small.  

3. The Core 

The core is the innermost part of the Earth. It is further divided into two parts – the liquid outer core and the solid inner core. The temperatures here can rise upwards of 50,000 C.  

Motion Of The Earth 

The Earth has mainly two motions – Rotation and Revolution.  

1. Rotation

The Earth rotates on its axis in a clockwise motion. It takes the Earth 23.9 hours to complete one rotation on its axis. The rotation of the Earth causes the change in day and night. 

2. Revolution

The Earth revolves around the Sun in a fixed orbit in an anticlockwise direction. It takes the Earth 365 days, 6 hours, and 9 minutes to complete one rotation around the Sun. The revolution of the Earth causes the change in seasons.  

How Can We Protect The Mother Earth? 

There are many ways we can protect our Earth. Some ways are: 

• Be conscious about overusing and overexploiting resources. 
• Conserve energy, both fuel and electricity. 
• Do not pollute your surroundings, especially with plastic. 
• Remember the 3Rs – Reuse, Recycle and Reduce. 
• Strive to conserve your local flora and fauna.  

Below are something amazing facts about our Earth for kids:

• The name ‘Earth’ comes from the old English and Germanic words that mean ‘the ground’.  
• The Earth orbits around the sun at a whopping speed of 30 kilometres per second!  
• The Earth’s diameter is 12,800 kilometres, making it the 5 th largest planet in our solar system.  
• The Earth is the only planet known to support life. The availability of abundant oxygen and water makes this possible.  
• Due to the Moon slowing down Earth’s rotation, the days on Earth are, in fact, getting longer!  

What Will Your Child Learn From The Essay On Earth? 

Your child will learn a lot about our planet, its origins, its movements, etc. The essay on planet earth will also help your child learn how to write a good composition with perfect techniques. This article takes you through essay writing in a step-by-step manner.

1. Why Planet Earth Is Called A Blue Planet? 

Planet Earth is called the Blue Planet because 71% of its surface is covered with water. 

2. When Is World Earth Day Celebrated? 

World Earth Day is celebrated on 22nd April every year.  

Essay On The Sun for Kids Save The Earth Essay for Lower Primary Class Children 10 Lines, Short and Long Essay on Environment for Kids

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Home — Essay Samples — Science — Earth Science — The Beauty of Earth: An Essay on the Magnificence of Our Planet

The Beauty of Earth: an Essay on The Magnificence of Our Planet

• Categories: Earth Science

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Words: 598 |

Published: Mar 8, 2024

Words: 598 | Page: 1 | 3 min read

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The natural wonders of earth, the diverse inhabitants of earth, preserving the beauty of earth.

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Cosmochemistry: Why study it? What can it teach us about finding life beyond Earth?

by Laurence Tognetti, Universe Today

Universe Today has had some fantastic discussions with researchers on the importance of studying impact craters, planetary surfaces, exoplanets, astrobiology, solar physics, comets, planetary atmospheres, and planetary geophysics, and how these diverse scientific fields can help researchers and the public better understand the search for life beyond Earth.

Here, we will investigate the unique field of cosmochemistry and how it provides researchers with the knowledge pertaining to both our solar system and beyond, including the benefits and challenges, finding life beyond Earth, and suggestive paths for upcoming students who wish to pursue studying cosmochemistry. But what is cosmochemistry and why is it so important to study it?

"Cosmochemistry is the study of space stuff, the actual materials that make up planets, stars, satellites, comets, and asteroids," Dr. Ryan Ogliore, who is an associate professor of physics at Washington University in St. Louis, tells Universe Today. "This stuff can take all the forms of matter: solid, liquid, gas, and plasma.

Cosmochemistry is different from astronomy which is primarily concerned with the study of light that interacts with this stuff. There are two main benefits of studying actual astromaterials: 1) the materials record the conditions at the time and place where they formed, allowing us to look into the deep past; and 2) laboratory measurements of materials are extraordinarily precise and sensitive, and continue to improve as technology improves."

In a nutshell, the field of cosmochemistry, also known as chemical cosmology, perfectly sums up Carl Sagan's famous quote, "The cosmos is within us. We are made of star-stuff. We are a way for the cosmos to know itself." To understand cosmochemistry is to understand how the Earth got here, how we got here, and possibly how life got wherever we're (hopefully) going to find it, someday.

Like all scientific fields, cosmochemistry incorporates a myriad of methods and strategies with the goal of answering some of the universe's most difficult questions, specifically pertaining to how the countless stellar and planetary objects throughout the universe came to be. These methods and strategies primarily include laboratory analyses of meteorites and other physical samples brought back from space, including from the moon, asteroids, and comets. But what are some of the benefits and challenges of studying cosmochemistry?

"One of the primary benefits of cosmochemistry is the ability to reproduce measurements," Dr. Ogliore tells Universe Today. "I can measure something in my lab, and somebody else can measure either the same object, or a very similar object, in another lab to confirm my measurements. Only after repeated measurements, by different labs and different techniques, will a given claim be universally accepted by the community. This is difficult to do in astronomy, and also difficult using remote-sensing measurements on spacecraft studying other bodies in the solar system."

Apart from the crewed Apollo missions to the moon, all other samples from space have been returned via robotic spacecraft. While this might seem like an easy process from an outside perspective, collecting samples from space and returning them to Earth is a very daunting and time-consuming series of countless tests, procedures, precise calculations, and hundreds to thousands of scientists and engineers ensuring every little detail is covered to ensure complete mission success, often to only collect a few ounces of material.

This massive effort is tasked with not only ensuring successful sample collection, but also ensuring successful storage of the samples to avoid contamination during their journey home, and then retrieving the samples once they land in a capsule back on Earth, where they are properly unpacked, cataloged, and stored for laboratory analysis.

To demonstrate the difficulty in conducting a sample return mission, only four nations have successfully used robotic explorers to collect samples from another planetary body and returned them to Earth: the former Soviet Union, United States, Japan, and China. The former Soviet Union successfully returned lunar samples to Earth throughout the 1970s; the United States has returned samples from a comet, asteroid, and even solar particles; Japan has successfully returned samples from two asteroids; and most recently, China succeeded in returning 61.1 ounces from the moon, which is the current record for robotic sample return missions. But even with the difficulty of conducting a successful sample return mission, what can cosmochemistry teach us about finding life beyond Earth?

"Cosmochemistry can tell us about the delivery of the ingredients necessary for life to planets or moons via asteroids or comets," Dr. Ogliore tells Universe Today. "Since we have both asteroid and comet material in the lab, we can tell if primitive pre-biotic organic compounds may have been delivered by these bodies. Of course, this doesn't mean life on Earth (or elsewhere) started this way, only that it is one pathway. Detection of life on another world would be one of the biggest discoveries in the history of science. So of course we'd want to be absolutely sure! This requires repeated measurements by different labs using different techniques, which requires a sample on Earth. I think the only way we'd know for sure if there was life on Europa, Enceladus, or Mars is if we bring a sample back to Earth from these places."

As it turns out, NASA is actively working on the Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission, for which Dr. Ogliore is a member of the MSR Measurement Definition Team. The goal of MSR will be to travel to the Red Planet to collect and return samples of Martian regolith to Earth for the first time in history. The first step of this mission is currently being accomplished by NASA's Perseverance rover in Jezero Crater, as it is slowly collecting samples and dropping them in tubes across the Martian surface for future retrieval by MSR.

For Europa, while there have been several discussions regarding a sample return mission, including a 2002 study discussing a sample return mission from Europa's ocean and a 2015 study discussing a potential plume sample return mission, no definitive sample return missions from Europa are currently in the works, possibly due to the enormous distance. Despite this, and while not a life-finding mission, Dr. Ogliore has been tasked to lead a robotic mission to Jupiter's volcanic moon, Io, to explore its plethora of volcanoes. For Enceladus, the Life Investigation for Enceladus (LIFE) mission has had a number of mission proposals submitted to return samples from Enceladus' plumes, though it has yet to be accepted. But what is the most exciting aspect about cosmochemistry that Dr. Ogliore has studied during his career?

"In my opinion the most important single measurement in the history of cosmochemistry was the measurements of the oxygen isotopic composition of the sun," Dr. Ogliore tells Universe Today. "To do this, we needed to return samples of the solar wind to Earth, which we did with NASA's Genesis mission. However, the sample return capsule crashed on Earth. But did that stop the cosmochemists?! Hell no! Kevin McKeegan and colleagues at UCLA had built a specialized, enormous, complicated instrument to study these samples. Despite the crash, McKeegan and colleagues analyzed oxygen in the solar wind and found that it was 6% lighter than oxygen found on Earth, and it matched the composition of the oldest known objects in the solar system: millimeter-sized calcium-aluminum inclusions (CAIs) found in meteorites."

Dr. Ogliore continues by telling Universe Today about how this result was predicted by Bob Clayton at the University of Chicago, along with crediting his own postdoc, Lionel Vacher, for conducting a research project that built off the Genesis results, noting, "This was a really fun project because it was technically very challenging, and the results put the solar system in its astrophysical context."

Like the myriad of scientific disciplines that Universe Today has examined during this series, cosmochemistry is successful due to its multidisciplinary nature that contributes to the goal of answering some of the universe's most difficult questions. Dr. Ogliore emphasizes that analysis of laboratory samples involves a multitude of scientific backgrounds to understand what the researchers are observing within each sample and the processes responsible for creating them. Additionally, this also includes the aforementioned sample return missions and hundreds to thousands of scientists and engineers who partake in each mission . Therefore, what advice can Dr. Ogliore offer to upcoming students who wish to pursue cosmochemistry?

"Biology, chemistry, geology, physics, math, electronics—you need it all!" Dr. Ogliore tells Universe Today. "If you like learning new things constantly, then planetary science is for you. It is good to get a very broad education. This will serve you well in a number of careers, but it is especially true for planetary science and cosmochemistry. I get to work with people who study volcanoes, and mathematicians working on chaotic motion. How cool is that?!"

All things considered, cosmochemistry is both an enormously challenging and rewarding field of study to try and answer some of the most difficult and longstanding questions regarding the processes responsible for the existence of celestial bodies in the solar system and beyond, including stars, planets, moons, meteorites, and comets, along with how life emerged on our small, blue world. As noted, cosmochemistry perfectly sums up Carl Sagan's famous quote, "The cosmos is within us. We are made of star-stuff. We are a way for the cosmos to know itself." It is through cosmochemistry and the analysis of meteorites and other returned samples that enable researchers to slowly inch our way to answering what makes life and where we can find it.

"Meteorites are the most spectacular record of nature known to mankind," Dr. Ogliore tells Universe Today. "We have rocks from Mars, the moon, volcanic worlds, asteroid Vesta, and dozens of other worlds. Iron meteorites are the cores of broken apart planets. These rocks record processes that occurred four and a half billion years ago and fall to Earth in a blazing fireball traveling at miles per second. You can follow various blogs that track fireballs, and even calculate areas where meteorites might have fallen. If you ever have the opportunity, go try to find one of these freshly fallen meteorites. The odds are long, but it is worth a try. I have not found a meteorite myself yet, but it is a life goal of mine."

Provided by Universe Today

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Look up —

Seeing this eclipse is probably the highest-reward, lowest-effort thing one can do in life, don't not see it..

Eric Berger - Mar 25, 2024 1:32 pm UTC

If you enter "how to see the eclipse" into your favorite search engine, you're bound to see thousands—millions?—of helpful guides. Some of these are extremely detailed and thorough, almost as if the author were getting paid by the word or augmented by AI.

In reality, seeing a solar eclipse is just about the easiest thing one can do in one's life. Like, it's difficult to think of anything else that has the greatest reward-lowest effort ratio in life. You just need to know a couple of things. For the sake of simplicity, here is Ars' four-step guide to having a four-star eclipse-viewing experience. Steps are listed in order of ascending importance.

Step 1 : Identify the path of totality. This is where the total solar eclipse will be visible on April 8. The National Solar Observatory has a good map here . Click on the map to get the exact timing. It's time and place sorted.

Step 2 : Obtain solar eclipse glasses. These will be for sale everywhere, but don't forget them, and make sure they're ISO certified so your eyes don't get fried. A pair should cost about $2. You don't need to pay more than that.

Step 3 : Check the weather forecast. This is the second-most important step, after step 4. Seriously, nothing sucks worse than an eclipse with cloudy skies. (Well, an eclipse with cloudy skies and a car wreck on the way home sucks worse, so drive carefully.) Generally, the further southwest one goes on the path of totality, the greater the chance of clear skies. But that's climatology, not weather forecasting. As a meteorologist, I'm watching this closely, but it is still way too early to make a sensible forecast for which locations will see clear skies and which ones will be cloudy two weeks from now. We should have a better sense of things in about a week, especially for areas where high pressure will dominate. But for some locations, we may not really have a good handle on the forecast for days, or even hours, before totality. Yes, cloud cover can be that tricky.

Step 4 : Look up.

That's it. Really. You can go to a special eclipse party to see it, but the experience is going to be the same whether you're parked alongside a rural road in Arkansas or watching with thousands of friends in Indianapolis.

In reality, a total solar eclipse is probably going to be the most spectacular celestial event most of us see in our lifetimes. Certainly, there could be more spectacular ones. A supernova within 100 light-years of Earth would be amazing. Witnessing a large asteroid streaking through Earth's atmosphere before impact would be incredible.

Unfortunately, those would also be lethal.

reader comments

Channel ars technica.

Essay on Our Beautiful Earth

Students are often asked to write an essay on Our Beautiful Earth in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Our Beautiful Earth

Introduction.

Our Beautiful Earth is a unique planet brimming with life and beauty. It’s the only known celestial body to support life, making it extraordinary.

Earth’s Beauty

Earth’s beauty is diverse, from towering mountains to deep oceans. The changing seasons further enhance its charm, each bringing its own magic.

Nature’s Wonders

The Earth is home to various species of plants and animals. The diversity in ecosystems, from dense forests to arid deserts, is truly amazing.

Our Responsibility

As inhabitants, it’s our responsibility to preserve Earth’s beauty. By practicing sustainable living, we can ensure a healthy planet for future generations.

250 Words Essay on Our Beautiful Earth

Introduction: a blue marble in space.

Our beautiful Earth, a celestial body in the solar system, is an awe-inspiring testament to the universe’s capacity for life. It is a unique oasis, a ‘blue marble’ as seen from space, with its swirling clouds, blue oceans, and green landmasses.

The Earth’s Biodiversity

Earth’s biodiversity is a marvel, with millions of species coexisting in various ecosystems. From the microscopic organisms dwelling in the deepest trenches of the oceans to the gigantic mammals roaming the vast savannahs, Earth is a cradle of life. The intricate web of life forms an interconnected system, where each species plays a crucial role in maintaining the overall balance.

Earth’s Geographical Wonders

The geographical wonders of Earth are equally mesmerizing. Towering mountain ranges, expansive deserts, lush rainforests, tranquil lakes, and roaring rivers all contribute to the planet’s stunning beauty. Each geographical feature represents a different facet of Earth’s dynamic nature, shaped by millions of years of geological processes.

Human Interaction with Earth

Humans, as intelligent beings, have the privilege and responsibility of interacting with Earth in a mindful manner. Our actions can either enhance Earth’s beauty or lead to its degradation. The current environmental crisis is a stark reminder of the consequences of irresponsible interaction. Therefore, it is imperative to adopt sustainable practices to preserve Earth’s beauty for future generations.

Conclusion: A Call for Preservation

Our beautiful Earth is an irreplaceable gem in the vast cosmos. As we marvel at its beauty, we must also remember our duty to protect and preserve it. The Earth does not belong to us; we belong to the Earth. In this understanding lies the key to ensuring the continued beauty and vitality of our shared home.

500 Words Essay on Our Beautiful Earth

The splendor of our beautiful earth.

The Earth, our shared home, is an enchanting spectacle of life, diversity, and beauty. Its grandeur is not confined to its biological diversity, but extends to its geographical peculiarities, climatic variations, and the intricate harmony that exists among its various elements.

Geographical Diversity

Earth’s geographical diversity is a testament to its beauty. From the snow-capped peaks of the Himalayas to the sandy dunes of the Sahara, the geographical variations are profound. The verdant Amazon rainforest, the expansive savannas of Africa, the serene beaches of the Caribbean, and the icy landscapes of the Arctic, all contribute to the Earth’s stunning panorama. Each geographical feature holds a unique charm, offering a different perspective of beauty.

Climatic Variations

The climatic variations on Earth further add to its allure. The Earth’s tilt and revolution result in distinct seasons, each with its unique characteristics. The blossoming of flowers in spring, the warmth of summer, the falling leaves of autumn, and the serenity of winter, all present a cyclic spectacle of change and renewal. These climatic variations not only add to the Earth’s beauty but also play a crucial role in the survival and evolution of various species.

Biodiversity: The Earth’s Living Tapestry

Earth’s biodiversity is another aspect that accentuates its beauty. It is home to an estimated 8.7 million species, each with its unique traits and roles in the ecosystem. From the microscopic organisms in the ocean depths to the majestic elephants in the African plains, life on Earth is a vibrant tapestry of interdependence and co-existence. This biodiversity is a testament to the Earth’s capacity to sustain life in all its forms, adding to the planet’s aesthetic and intrinsic value.

The Harmony of Earth

Perhaps the most striking feature of our beautiful Earth is the harmony that exists among its various elements. The water cycle, carbon cycle, and nitrogen cycle are all examples of how different components of the Earth interact to maintain balance. This intricate harmony is a testament to the Earth’s resilience and its ability to support life. The Earth’s beauty lies not just in its individual components, but in the way these components interact and co-exist to create a balanced and sustainable system.

While we marvel at the Earth’s beauty, we must also acknowledge our responsibility towards its preservation. The Earth’s beauty is under threat due to human activities like deforestation, pollution, and climate change. As inhabitants of this beautiful planet, it is our duty to protect and preserve it for future generations.

In conclusion, our Earth is a beautiful entity, a complex amalgamation of various elements working in harmony. Its beauty lies in its diversity, its capacity to sustain life, and its resilience. As we continue to explore and understand our planet, let’s also strive to protect and preserve its beauty. After all, there is no Planet B.

That’s it! I hope the essay helped you.

If you’re looking for more, here are essays on other interesting topics:

• Essay on My Earth My Responsibility
• Essay on Importance of Earth
• Essay on Importance of Earth Day

Apart from these, you can look at all the essays by clicking here .

Happy studying!

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