PART IV
"THE EARTH"

A Planet Created for Mankind

Do you not see that Allah has subjected to you everything in the heavens and earth and has showered His blessings upon you, both outwardly and inwardly? Yet there are people who argue about Allah without knowledge or guidance or any illuminating Book.   (Surah Luqman: 20)

Materialist philosophy offers a single explanation of the order and balance in the universe: it is coincidence. According to this claim, the whole universe is shaped through coincidences.

However, when we investigate the universe only briefly, we see that this claim is completely unreal. Coincidence only leads to chaos whereas order, rather than chaos, prevails in the universe. This order proves to us the being and eternal power of Allah, Who created the universe out of nothing and then gave it a shape.

When we explore the universe, we encounter numerous examples of order. The world we live in is only one of those. With all its features, the world is created with extremely delicate balances making it suitable for the survival of living beings.

The distance of the earth from the sun, the inclination of its axis to its orbit, the balances in the atmosphere, the rotational speed of the earth around its axis and around the sun, the functions of oceans and mountains on the earth, the features of living beings and the interactions of all those, are just a few elements of this ecological balance.

When earth is compared with other planets, it becomes even more evident that it is especially designed for man. Water, for instance, is a compound that is very rarely found in space. The liquid form of water exists only in our planet out of all the planets in the solar system. Moreover, 70% of the world is covered with water. Millions of varieties of living beings live in this medium. The freezing of water, its capacity to attract and store heat, the existence of very large masses of water in the form of oceans, and the even distribution of heat across the world are all exclusive characteristics of the earth. No other planet has such a liquid mass in constant circulation.

The axis of the earth makes a 23-degree inclination to its orbit. Seasons are formed due to this inclination. If this inclination were a little more or less than it is now, temperature differences between seasons would reach extremes and unbearably hot summers and extremely cold winters would take place on the earth.

The earth’s rotation around its axis is at the most appropriate speed for living beings. When we look at other planets in the solar system, we see that they also experience night and day. However, because the time differences are far bigger than those in the world, the temperature differences between day and night are very high. The fierce wind activity in the atmospheres of other planets is not experienced in the world’s atmosphere thanks to this balanced rotation.

The gases making up the atmosphere and their concentration in the atmosphere are extremely important for the existence not only of human beings but also of all living beings on the earth. The formation of the gasses in the atmosphere in just the right proportions that remain constant is made possible by the co-existence of numerous delicate balances.

Hundreds of points can be listed in addition to the above mentioned features. Even the examples quoted so far, however, reveal to us a certain reality:

The world in which we live is very specially constructed for the survival of living beings. It is the product not of coincidence but of a conscious order.

This perfect order prevailing throughout the universe leads us to a single conclusion: a Creator with infinite power and wisdom, that is, Allah, Who is the Possessor of all worlds, created the universe.

THE GREAT BALANCE IN THE ATMOSPHERE

On the other hand, oxygen reacts with other atoms, organic compounds, and even rocks. These reactions yield the most basic molecules of life such as water and carbon dioxide.

In addition to the reactivity of gasses, their present concentrations are also highly critical for life.Let us look at oxygen, for instance. Oxygen is the most abundant reactive gas in our atmosphere. The high oxygen concentration of our atmosphere is one of the features that distinguish earth from other planets in the solar system in which even minute amounts of oxygen are not present.

If there were more oxygen in the atmosphere, oxidation would take place quicker and rocks and metals would be eroded sooner. Hence, the earth would be eroded and disintegrate, and animate life would face a great threat. If we had a little less oxygen, respiration would become harder, and less of the ozone gas would be produced. Changes in the amount of ozone would be fatal for life. Less ozone would cause the solar ultra-violet rays to reach the world in greater intensity causing living things to vanish. More ozone would prevent the sun’s heat reaching the earth and thus be fatal.

Carbon dioxide has similar delicate balances. Plants absorb the sun’s radiation via this gas, mix it with water, form bicarbonate that dissolves rocks, and leave it in oceans. They also break this gas down and release oxygen back into the atmosphere. Thus, oxygen, an essential for living beings, is constantly released into the atmosphere. This gas also helps the world maintain a "greenhouse effect" keeping its present temperature constant.

If there were less carbon dioxide, the amount of plant-life on land and in the sea would be reduced, leaving less food for animals. There would be less bicarbonate in the oceans, thus causing an increase in acidity. An increase in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere would expedite the chemical erosion of land forming a detrimental alkali residue in oceans. In addition, the greenhouse effect would increase, thus causing the surface temperature of the earth to rise and life on earth to be destroyed.

As seen, the existence of the atmosphere has great importance for the continuation of life on earth. A number of astrophysical conditions have to co-exist for the atmosphere to be maintained.
 

How many signs there are in the heavens and earth! Yet they pass them by, turning away from them.  (Surah Yusuf: 105)

A) The earth’s surface has to remain at a certain moderate temperature, within definite limits. For this:

1. The earth has to be a certain distance from the sun. This distance plays a role in the quantity of heat energy reaching the earth from the sun. A slight deviation in the earth’s orbit around the sun – either drawing closer or farther – would cause great changes in the heat reaching the earth from the sun. Calculations show that a 13% decrease in the heat reaching the earth would cause it to be covered with an ice layer 1,000 metres thick. A slight increase in energy, on the other hand, would cause all living things to be scorched.

2. The temperature should be homogeneous across the earth. For this, the world has to rotate about its axis at a certain speed (1,670 km/hr at the equator). If the earth’s speed of rotation were to exceed a certain limit, the atmosphere would grow extremely warm, increasing the gas molecules’ velocity of escape from the earth and causing the atmosphere to be dispersed in space and to vanish.

If the earth’s velocity of rotation were slower than required, then gas molecules’ velocity of escape from the earth would decrease and they would also disappear through being absorbed by the earth because of the effect of gravitation.

3. The 23º27' inclination of the earth's axis prevents the excess heat between the poles and the equator liable to pose an obstacle to the formation of the atmosphere. If this inclination had not existed, the temperature difference between the polar zones and the equator would increase enormously, making it impossible for a life-supportive atmosphere to exist.

B) A layer is needed to prevent the dispersion of generated heat:

To keep the earth’s surface temperature at a constant level, temperature loss must be prevented, particularly at nights. For this purpose, there is a need for a compound to prevent heat loss from the atmosphere. This need is met by introducing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide covers the earth like a quilt and prevents the loss of heat to space.

Mankind! Worship your Lord, who created you and those before you, so that hopefully you will have taqwa. It is He who made the earth a couch for you, and the sky a dome. (Surat al-Baqarah: 21-22)

C) On earth, there are certain structures maintaining the balance of heat between the poles and the equator:

There is a heat difference of 120°C between the poles and the equator. If such a heat difference had
existed on a more even surface, there would be tremendous atmospheric movement, and heavy storms with speed of 1,000 km per hour would turn the world upside down. Because of these storms, the equilibrium in the atmosphere would soon be destroyed and the atmosphere would dissipate.

However, the earth is uneven and that blocks potential powerful air currents that might have arisen due to the heat difference. The unevenness starts with the Himalayas between the Indian sub-continent and China, continues with the Taurus Mountains in Anatolia, and reaches the Alps in Europe through mountain-chains joining the Atlantic Ocean in the west and the Pacific Ocean in the east. In the oceans, the excess heat formed at the equator is channelled to north and south due to the properties of liquids, thus balancing the heat differences.

As seen, the existence of air, one of the basic elements of life, has become possible only with the establishment of thousands of physical and ecological balances. Moreover, the establishment of those conditions alone on our planet is not sufficient for the continuation of life on earth. If the world were to exist in its present state with its geophysical structure and its motion in space, yet have a different position in the galaxy, the balance would still be upset.

For instance, a smaller star instead of the sun would cause the earth to grow extremely cold, and a bigger star would scorch the earth.

It is sufficient to look at the dead planets in space in order to understand that the earth is not a result of random coincidence. The conditions essential for life are too complicated to have been formed "on their own" and at random, and, certainly within the solar system,  the earth alone is especially created for life.

THE NITROGEN BALANCE AND BACTERIA

Nitrogen is one of the basic elements found in the tissues of all living organisms. Although 78% of the atmosphere consists of nitrogen, human beings and animals cannot absorb it directly. It is the main function of bacteria to meet our need for nitrogen.

The nitrogen cycle starts with the gas nitrogen (N₂) in the air. Bacteria living in some plants transform nitrogen in the air into ammonia (NH₃). Other types of bacteria, on the other hand, transform ammonia into nitrate (NO₃). (Lightning also plays an important role in the transformation of the nitrogen in the air into ammonia.)

At the next stage, living things that produce their own food, such as green plants, absorb nitrogen. Animals and human beings that cannot produce their own food can meet their nitrogen need only by eating these plants.

The nitrogen in animals and human beings returns to nature through their faeces and their corpses which bacteria decompose. While doing so, bacteria not only perform the task of cleaning but also release ammonia, the main source of nitrogen. While a certain amount of ammonia is converted to carbon by some other bacteria and mixes with the air, another part is converted to nitrate by other types of bacteria. Plants use them and the cycle continues.

The lack of bacteria in this cycle alone would bring the end of life. Without bacteria, plants could not meet their need for carbon and would soon become extinct. It is not possible to talk of life in a place where no plants exist.

THE EARTH'S PRESERVED AND PROTECTED ROOF: THE ATMOSPHERE

In the Qur’an, this characteristic in the creation of the atmosphere is explained: "We made the sky a preserved and protected roof yet still they turn away from Our signs." (Surat al-Anbiya: 32)

One of the most important indications that the sky is "a preserved and protected roof" is the magnetic field surrounding the earth. The top layer of the atmosphere is made up of a magnetic zone called the "Van Allen Belt". This zone is formed by the qualities of the earth’s core.

The core of the earth contains heavy magnetic elements like iron and nickel. What is more important, however, is that the core is composed of two distinct structures. The inner core is solid while the outer core is liquid. The outer layer floats on top of the inner layer, creating a magnetic effect on heavy metals, which in turn forms a magnetic field. The Van Allen Belt is an extension of this magnetic zone reaching the outer layer of the atmosphere. This magnetic field shields the earth against possible dangers from space.

One of the most serious of these dangers is the "solar winds". Apart from heat, light and radiation, the sun sends the earth a wind made up of protons and electrons moving at a speed of 1.5 million kilometres per hour.

Solar winds cannot pass through the Van Allen Belts, which create magnetic fields at a distance of 40,000 miles from the earth. When the solar wind, in the form of a rain of particles, runs into this magnetic field, it decomposes and flows around this field.

The atmosphere absorbs most of the X-rays and ultraviolet rays emitted by the sun. Without this absorption, life on earth would be impossible.

The atmospheric zones surrounding us only let harmless rays, radio waves, and visible light reach the earth. If our atmosphere did not have such impermeability, we could neither use radio waves for communication nor have daylight, which is the basis of life.

The ozone layer surrounding the earth prevents harmful ultraviolet rays from the sun from reaching the earth. Ultraviolet rays from the sun are so charged with energy that they could kill all living things on earth. For this reason, to make life possible on earth, the ozone layer is another especially created part of the "preserved and protected roof" of the sky.

Ozone is produced from oxygen. While there are two oxygen atoms in the (O₂) molecules of oxygen gas, there are three oxygen atoms in the (O₃) molecules of ozone gas.Ultraviolet rays coming from the sun add one more atom to the oxygen molecule to form the ozone molecule. The ozone layer, which is formed by the action of ultraviolet, arrests fatal ultraviolet rays and thus constitutes one of the most basic conditions of life on earth.

Briefly, if the earth’s core did not have the quality of forming magnetic field, and the atmosphere did not have the structure and density to filter harmful rays, life on earth would be out of the question. It is, no doubt, impossible for any human being or any other living being to have ordered those. It is evident that Allah has created those protective features that are critically essential for human life, and that He created the sky as a "preserved and protected roof".

That other planets lack such "preserved and protected roofs" is another indication that the earth is specially designed for human life. For instance, the entire core of the planet Mars is solid and therefore there is no protective magnetic shield around it. Because Mars is not as big as the earth, not enough pressure has been generated to form the liquid part of the core. In addition, being the right size alone is not enough for the formation of a magnetic field around a planet. For instance, the diameter of Venus is almost the same as that of the earth. Its mass is only 2% less than the earth’s and its weight is almost the same as the earth’s. Therefore, both in terms of pressure and for other reasons, it is inevitable that a metallic liquid part should form in the core of Venus. However, there is no magnetic field around Venus, the reason being the relatively slower rotation of Venus as compared to earth. While earth completes its rotation about its axis in one day, Venus does so in 243 days.

The sizes of the moon and other neighbouring planets and their distances to the earth are also important for the existence of the magnetic field constituting the "preserved and protected roof" of the earth. If one of these planets was bigger than its actual size, it would cause it to have a greater gravitational force. A neighbouring planet with such a large gravitational force would change the velocity of the liquid and solid parts of the earth’s core and prevent the formation of a magnetic field in its present form.

Briefly, the sky’s having the quality of a "preserved and protected roof" requires that many variables such as the structure of the earth’s core, its rotational speed, the distance between planets, and the masses of planets converge at the most correct point.

THE WATER CYCLE AND LIFE

Each moment, millions of cubic metres of water are carried from the oceans to the atmosphere and then to the land. Life depends on this giant water cycle. If we had attempted to arrange this cycle, we would not have been able to succeed even if we had used all the technology in the world. Through evaporation, however, we obtain water, the first and foremost condition of life, without any extra cost or energy. Each year 45 million cubic metres of water evaporate from the oceans. The evaporated water is carried by winds over the lands in the form of clouds. Each year, 3-4 million cubic metres of water are carried from oceans to lands, and therefore to us.

Simply put, water, over whose cycle we have no control, and without which we cannot live more than a few days, is sent to us in a very special way.

The Qur’an reminds us that this is one of the most evident signs for which man should be "grateful":

Have you thought about the water that you drink? Is it you who sent it down from the clouds or are We the Sender? If We wished We could have made it bitter, so will you not give thanks? (Surat al-Waqi’ah: 68-70)

RAIN IS SENT DOWN IN MEASURED AMOUNTS

Indeed, rain falls on the earth in an unerring measure.

It is He Who sends down water from the sky. From it you drink and from it come the shrubs among which you graze your herds. And by it He makes crops grow for you and olives and dates and grapes and fruit of every kind. There is certainly a sign in that for people who reflect. (Surat an-Nahl: 10-11)

The first of the measures related to rain is its speed of descent. When dropped from a height of 1,200 metres, an object having the same weight and size as a rain-drop would continuously accelerate and fall on the ground at a speed of 558 km/h. The average raindrop, however, fall at only 10-12 km/h.

The reason for this is that the raindrop has a special form that increases the frictional effect of the atmosphere and helps it fall on the ground more slowly. A glance at the figures below is sufficient to understand the disaster the earth would face every time it rained if rain raindrops were in a different form, or the atmosphere did not have the quality of friction.

The minimum altitude of rain clouds is 1,200 metres. The effect caused by a single drop falling from that height is equal to a 1 kg object dropped from 15 cm. There are also rain clouds at altitudes of 10,000 metres. In this case, a single drop would have an effect equal to a 1 kg object dropped from 110 cm.
It is estimated that in one second, approximately 16 million tons of water evaporate from the earth. This number is equal to the amount of water that drops on the earth in one second. In one year, this figure amounts to 505x1012 tons. Water continuously circulates in a balanced cycle according to a "measure".

THE FORMATION OF RAIN

What is related in the Qur’an about the formation of rain shows great parallels with these discoveries:

It is Allah Who sends the winds (1st Stage) which stir up clouds which He spreads about the sky however He wills. He forms them into dark clumps (2nd Stage) and you see the rain come pouring out from the middle of them (3rd stage). When He makes it fall on those of His slaves He wills, they rejoice! (Surat ar-Rum: 48)

Countless air bubbles formed by the foaming of the oceans continuously burst and cause water particles to be ejected towards the sky. These particles which are rich in salt, are then carried away by winds and ascend in the atmosphere. These particles, which are called aerosols, function as water traps, and form cloud drops by collecting around themselves the water vapour, which ascends from the seas as tiny drops.

SECOND STAGE: " ... which stir up clouds which He spreads about the sky however He wills. He forms them into dark clumps..."

The clouds form from water vapour that condenses around the salt crystals or dust particles in the air. Because the water drops in these clouds are very small (with a diameter between 0.01 and 0.02 mm), the clouds are suspended in the air and they spread in the sky. Thus, the sky is covered with clouds.

THIRD STAGE: "...and you see the rain come pouring out from the middle of them."

The water particles that surround salt crystals and dust particles thicken and form raindrops, so, the drops which become heavier than air leave the clouds, and start to fall on the ground as rain.
 
 

Have you thought about the water that you drink? Is it you who sent it down from the clouds or are We the Sender? If We wished We could have made it bitter, so will you not give thanks? (Surat al-Waqi’ah: 68-70)

…and (did We not) give you sweet fresh water to drink? (Surat al-Mursalat: 27)

It is He Who sends down water from the sky. From it you drink and from it come the shrubs among which you graze your herds. (Surat an-Nahl: 10)

As we know, the source of rainwater is evaporation and 97% of evaporation takes place from "salty" oceans. Rainwater, however, is sweet. The reason why rain is sweet is because of another physical law that Allah established. According to this law, no matter whether water evaporates from salt seas, or mineralised lakes, or from within mud, it does not contain any foreign material. It falls on the ground pure and clean according to Allah’s ordinance "…And We send down from heaven pure water" (Surat al-Furqan: 48)

RAINS THAT GIVE LIFE TO A DEAD LAND

In addition to furnishing the earth with water, which is an inevitable need of living beings, rain also has a fertilising effect.

Raindrops that reach the clouds after being evaporated from the seas contain certain substances "that will give life" to a dead land. These "life-giving" drops are called "surface tension drops". Surface tension drops form on the top level of the sea’s surface, which is called the micro layer by biologists. In this layer, which is thinner than one tenth of a millimetre, there are many organic leftovers from the pollution caused by microscopic algae and zooplankton. Some of these leftovers select and collect within themselves some elements which are very rare in sea water, such as phosphorus, magnesium, potassium and some heavy metals like copper, zinc, cobalt and lead. These "fertiliser"-laden drops are lifted up into the sky by the winds and after a while they drop on the ground inside the raindrops. Seeds and plants on the earth find numerous metallic salts and elements essential for their growth here in these raindrops. This event is revealed in another verse:

"And We sent down blessed water from the sky and made gardens grow by it and grain for harvesting." (Surah Qaf: 9)

In this way, 150 million tons of fertiliser falls on the total land surface every year. If there were no natural fertilisation like this, there would be very little vegetation on the earth, and the ecological balance would be impaired.

THE USE OF FREEZING FROM ABOVE

If ice were heavier than water (which is what would normally be expected), then seas would start freezing from the bottom. In this case, the insulation referred to above would not occur, all of the seas would freeze and life in water would be destroyed. Since ice takes up more space than water, the frozen seas would take up more space than before and cause the water on the top to rise and overflow.

In addition, that water’s heaviest state is +4°C is very important for life. In seas, water reaching +4°C sinks to the bottom as it is at its heaviest. For this reason, the bottom of the seas that are covered with icebergs is always in a liquid state, and has a temperature of +4°C in which living beings can survive. Similarly, in wintertime, the bottoms of lakes and rivers covered with an icy layer are also life supportive.

It is He Who made the earth a cradle for you and threaded pathways for you through it and sent down water from the sky by which We have brought forth various different types of plants. (Surah Ta Ha: 53)

WATER'S LATE WARMING UP AND FREEZING

Another feature of water is its slow evaporation and freezing. It is a known fact that in the summer months, the sand that rapidly warms up during the day also rapidly cools down at night. The temperature of seawater, on the other hand, only varies two to three degrees between day and night. The reason for this is that water somehow maintains its temperature in sudden rises and falls in temperature, and delays evaporation and freezing. When this quality of water is considered at the level of the entire world, it can be seen that water, either in liquid form or as steam, in oceans and the atmosphere, has the most important role in the earth’s temperature. Waters that cover the earth prevent overheating by absorbing the heat in that part of the world exposed to the sun. Similarly, in those parts that are not subjected to the sun as directly as elsewhere, oceans and other waters function, with the heat they possess, as a radiator and prevent the temperature from falling too low. This way, the temperature difference between day and night always remains within reasonable limits which human beings and other living things can tolerate. If the amount of water on the earth were less than the land area, then the temperature difference between night and day would increase a great deal, transforming the earth into a desert and making life impossible or, at least very difficult.
 

THE WEIGHT OF CLOUDS

The establishment of an order whereby a mass of 300,000 tons can rest in the sky is no doubt quite amazing. A verse in the Qur’an draws our attention to the weight of clouds:

"It He is Who sends out the winds, bringing advance news of His mercy, so that when they have lifted up the heavy clouds, We dispatch them to a dead land and send down water to it, by means of which We bring forth all kinds of fruit. In the same way We will bring forth the dead, so that hopefully you will pay heed." (Surat al-A’raf: 57)

WINDS

"…and the varying direction of the winds, there are signs for people who use their intellect." (Surat al-Jathiyah: 5)

What is interesting is that despite highly divergent zones of temperature and pressure such as the equator and the poles, our world is not continually exposed to very strong winds thanks to some barriers and "regulations". If the giant air current, which otherwise would likely have been formed between the poles and the equator, had not been softened by the means that will be described below, the earth would have been turned into a dead planet constantly exposed to heavy storms.

Principally, altitude differences on earth break the force of the winds. Highly differing altitudes give rise to warm and cold front systems. Seen on the lower slopes of mountains, these systems cause new winds. Thus, the bi-centred system between the equator and the pole transforms into a multi-centred system thanks to cliffs, and winds are softened by being channelled in different directions. The mountain chains on the earth’s crust function like giant air corridors. Corridors help the winds spread air evenly across the earth.

The inclination of the world’s axis also has a great role in the softening of the winds. If the axis of the earth had been exactly perpendicular to its orbit, the earth would have suffered from violent storms throughout. However, the equator of our planet is tilted at an angle of 23º27' with respect to its plane of orbit. Thus, the temperature does not always remain the same in the regions between the two poles and changes according to seasons. This means that the air pressure is brought into balance and that therefore the force of the wind is lessened. As the temperature difference between the equator and the two poles decreases, the winds blow warmer.

In addition, two gas layers have been created around the planet to balance the temperature difference. The ozone and carbon dioxide layers balance the temperature of the atmosphere. The ozone layer absorbs "excessive" sunrays. Carbon dioxide, on the other hand, has an opposite function: it retains the acquired heat and thus prevents cooling.

All of this material shows us that man owes his life to a great system containing increasingly complex sub-systems. The whole universe is created to make human life possible.