The Young Earth might have encountered a Mercury-like object

The Young Earth might have encountered a Mercury-like object

New research shows that the rivalry of giant planets such as Jupiter and Saturn in the early days of the solar system may have delivered the building blocks for the newborn Earth, providing the planet with chemical elements that allow it to contain a molten metal core.

We were on the moon, but we barely touched the surface of our planet!

The study, which is based on computer models, solves two long-standing secrets about the recipe of Mother Nature for the Earth. First, why does the planet have many rare earth metals, such as samarium (Sm) and neodymium (Nd), compared to meteorites, which are believed to be the building blocks of the Earth.

The second: how the metallic core of the planet remains hot for millions of years, forming convection - a process that generates a protective magnetic shield of the Earth. Anke Wohlers and Bernard Wood, researchers at the University of Oxford, had the idea to add a rich gray body to the computer model of the formation of the Earth. This allowed us to link together a study of the chemical mismatch between the elements of the Earth and meteorites and the observations of the NASA spacecraft. The messenger that Mercury has a high level of sulfur.

Models show that a third-party object could have from 20 to 40 percent of the size of the earth to produce the required chemical mixture. A catastrophe could occur when the building blocks of Earth began to unite together and an object, the size of Mars, called Theia, which led to the formation of the Moon, crashed into them.

“Moved by Jupiter, the inner part of the solar system looked like a mixer,” said Wood. "In such conditions, objects rich in sulfur could be scattered throughout the solar system."

Comments (0)
Search