Reaction Paper
Reaction Paper
Sibul G12-STEM A
According to the video, the history of Earth covers approximately 4 billion years from Earth’s
formation out of the solar nebula to the present. Earth formed as part of the birth of the solar
system which initially existed as a large, rotating cloud of dust and gas. It was composed of
hydrogen and helium produced in the Big Bang, as well as heavier elements produced by stars
long gone. Then, about 4.6 billion years ago, a nearby star probably became a supernova. The
explosion sent a shock wave toward the solar nebula and caused it to contract. As the cloud
continued to rotate, gravity and inertia flattened the cloud into a proto- planetary disc,
perpendicular to its axis of rotation. Most of the mass concentrated in the middle and began to
heat up. The impossibility of kinetic heat, produced by the infall of matter escaping caused the
centre to heat up sufficiently to enable the centre of the concentration to produce its own
internal heat source through nuclear fusion of hydrogen into helium, starting as a T Tauri star,
our early sun. Meanwhile, as gravity caused matter to condense around dust particles, the rest
of the disc started to break up into rings. Small fragments collided and became larger
fragments. These included one collection approximately 150 million kilometers from the centre:
Earth. As the Sun condensed and heated, fusion began, and the resulting T Tauri solar wind
cleared out most of the material in the disc that had not already condensed into larger
bodies.The origin of the Moon is still uncertain, although much evidence exists for the giant
impact hypothesis. Earth may not have been the only planet forming 150 million kilometers
from the Sun. It is hypothesized that another collection occurred 150 million kilometers from
both the Sun and the Earth, at the fourth or fifth Lagrangian point. This planet, named Theia, is
thought to have been smaller than the current Earth, probably about the size and mass of Mars.
Its orbit may at first have been stable but destabilized as Earth increased its mass by the
accretion of more and more material. Theia swung back and forth relative to Earth until, finally,
an estimated 4.533 billion years ago (perhaps 12:05 a.m. on our clock), it collided at a low,
oblique angle. The low speed and angle were not enough to destroy Earth, but a large portion
of its crust was ejected. Heavier elements from Theia sank to Earth’s core, while the remaining
material and ejecta condensed into a single body within a couple of weeks. Under the influence
of its own gravity, this became a more spherical body: the Moon. The impact is also thought to
have changed Earth’s axis to produce the large 23.5° axial tilt that is responsible for Earth’s
seasons. (A simple, ideal model of the planets’ origins would have axial tilts of 0° with no
recognizable seasons.) It may also have speed up Earth’s rotation and initiated the planet’s plate
tectonics