Day And Night

DAY AND NIGHT •

God has created the universe with infinite wisdom and power and designed the earth specially for human life. Despite this fact, the majority of people lead their lives in total ignorance of these events. In the Qur'an, God reminds the people of His blessings “(God) makes night merge into day and day merge into night, and He has made the sun and moon subservient, each one running until a specified time. That is God, your Lord. The Kingdom is His. Those you call on besides Him have no power over even the smallest speck. (Surat al - Fatir: 13)”

CONTINENTAL DRIFT • The Theory of plate tectonics, is that it indicates that the continents of Earth’s crust move (relative to the main body of Earth) and change shape with time. • This explains the similarity of extinct animal and plant fossils on adjacent continents (such as South America and Africa) which are now separated by large bodies of water. • Magnetized minerals and their orientations relative to Earth’s magnetic poles also provide evidence for continental drift. • Some continental areas now close to the equator give evidence of at one time being covered with glaciers (which would have required them to be closer to the poles). • This “continental drift” is also consistent with the currently observed plate motions which give rise to volcanic and seismic activity.

INTERESTING FACT… •

Did you know?... The center of the Earth’s core is hotter than the surface of the sun. The temperature of Earth’s inner core reaches 6000 °C whereas the surface of the sun is roughly 5500 °C.

QUESTION: WHY IS EARTH SO MUCH MORE HOSPITABLE THAN OTHER PLANETS? Earth has a magnetic field that, together with a primarily nitrogenoxygen atmosphere, protects the surface from radiation that is harmful to life. About 71% of the surface is covered with salt-water oceans. The remaining 29% consists of continents and islands.

Resources On Planet Earth • • • • • • •

Land Water Air Mountains Plant Animals Climate

Plants • Plants include trees, herbs, bushes, grasses etc. • About 350,000 species of plants, are estimated to exist currently. As of 2004, some 287,655 species had been identified, of which 258,650 are flowering and 18,000 bryophy.

Plants Importance • Food by animals and humans. • Nonfood products : Wood is used for buildings, furniture, paper etc. • Negative effects : All drugs are produced from plants. Including tobacco, cocaine and opium.

Plants in the Light of Quran "He Who has made for you the earth like a carpet spread out; has enabled you to go about therein by roads (and channels); and has sent down water from the sky." With it have We produced diverse pairs of plants each separate from the others.” (Ta-Ha - Surah 20 Verse 53)

Animals • • • • • •

Amphibians Birds Bugs Fish Mammals Reptiles

Animals in the Light of Quran “And in the creation of yourselves and the fact that animals are scattered (through the earth), are Signs for those of assured Faith.” (Al-Jathiya - Surah 45 Verse 4)

Mountains Mountains cover 64% of Asia, 36% of North America, 25% of Europe, 22% of South America, 17% of Australia, 3% of Africa. As a whole, 24% of the Earth's land mass is mountainous. 10% of people live in mountainous regions.

Role of the Mountains Land as well as marine mountains act as pegs to strengthen the earth's crust layer.

Minerals Of Planet Earth • • • • • • • •

Coal Iron Metal Oil Uranium Natural Gases Rubber Gold

Iron • Iron is the most widely used of all the metals, accounting for 95% of worldwide metal production. • Its low cost and high strength make it indispensable in engineering applications such as the construction of machinery and machine tools, automobiles, large ships, and structural components for buildings.

Oil An oil is a substance that is in a viscous liquid state Mineral oil : All oils, with their high carbon and hydrogen content

Uses Petroleum • • • • • •

Diesel fuel (petrodiesel Petroleum Jet fuel Kerosene Liquid petroleum gas (LPG) Natural gas

Petroleum • About 80% of the world's readily accessible reserves are located in the Middle East, with 62.5% coming from the Arab 5: Saudi Arabia (12.5%), UAE, Iraq, Qatar and Kuwait. • However, with today's oil prices, Venezuela has larger reserves than Saudi Arabia due to crude reserves derived from bitumen. • Three oil producing countries are Saudi Arabia, Russia, and the United States.

VOLCANIC ACTIVITY • Volcanic activity, the production of molten rock (lava) and its eruption to Earth’s surface (on land or in the oceans) is one manifestation of tectonic activity. • Molten rock is produced as a result of the following two major types of plate motion: – Separation (moving apart) of two crustal plates, which allows molten rock to rise to the surface between them. – Collision of two crustal plates, with one moving beneath the other (subduction), resulting in the creation of molten rock from surface materials on the subducted plate.

• Volcanic activity in Iceland and elsewhere in the mid-Atlantic is due to crustal spreading (the mid-Atlantic rift). • Volcanic activity near the west coasts of North and South America is due to subduction of Pacific Ocean plates beneath the west edges of the continents. • Some volcanic activity, such as in the Hawaiian Islands, is not directly the result of plate motions.

EARTHQUAKES • Earthquakes are due to sudden motions of crustal plates, as a result of fracture or slipping of one plate relative to another. • Zones of high probability of earthquakes (seismic activity) are, like volcanic activity, usually near plate boundaries or subduction zones. • The shaking motion of earthquakes is due to the propagation of two types of seismic waves: longitudinal waves, and transverse waves. • Longitudinal waves, like sound waves, can propagate through solids and liquids. • Transverse waves can propagate only through solids. • Monitoring of seismic waves at large distances from earthquake centers have revealed details of Earth’s inner structure, including the fact that the outer core is molten (does not transmit transverse seismic waves).