ENVIRONMENT

Mount Everest has lost 3.7 meters from its height since 1975. This could not have been a process; measured by hours, days or years. These small occurrences have been accumulating during the last 25 years. Minor tremors to be included but not earthquakes.

During the same course of time the temperature of Lake Superior has increased by 4.5 degrees centigrade. The temperature of the air over the lake is colder than the water in the lake. This means evaporation, drifts, precipitation and not pouring back into Lake Superior.

If we associate the above two occurrences to the green-house gas effects we run into uncertainties if not absurdities. Two separate chapters must be opened for green-house gas effects and global warming. If mount Everest sunk into earth by 370 centimeters in 25 years so could the ice mountains in the arctic. Height-loss in subzero air around and above the surface of frozen water seems an improbable cause. Surface and base under water have different situations.

There is a concept in thermodynamics called entropy. A word astoundingly similar in sound and meaning to atrophy in the medical world, the shrinking of organs like the brain, liver, kidney etc. Atrophy is abnormal but entropy pentaining to the shrinking of the earth is a law of the planet, ever vaguely described in textbooks. A process on the go from the day the earth was separated from the sun billions of years ago; a huge mass of molten lava seething and bubbling with hot gases, rotating around the sun with eight other planets. The solar brothers in the system. With the passing of the centuries, the surface of planet earth has cooled and formed a crust. The crust, served as an insulation layer around the molten core, has became thicker with time.

The core temperature has kept relatively constant but heat transfer from the core to the surface has continued, reducing the diameter of the core, increasing the thickness of the crust. The crust and the core have became our planet earth, shrinking un-noticeably from inception on to be, through the life-span of the planet.

The thickness of the insulation not being effective enough no mater what material impeding heat transfer. There is no perfect insulation known to science. No absolute stoppage. Heat transfers at different rates from the hot-side to the cold- side no mater what the material. Only the thickness of the insulation could bring down the heat transfer to near none, but never the absolute none could be achieved. Never the absolute zero.

There is continuous heat transfer from the core of the earth to the surface and we call it global warming because now it has encompassed the earth, reached a critical stage, new vocabulary is needed to convey the meaning in short terms and at different eras. On the other hand the heat content of the earth is reducing which means the earth is cooling by losing heat at the same rate because of entropy. Heat loss of the earth being the main cause, anything happening out of order on earth causing a decrease of energy is also entropy. Explosion of an atomic bomb on earth is not Entropy, but an earthquake is. The insulation we call crust is shrinking, so the heat loss from the hot-core is higher. So the core is also becoming smaller. Mount Everest is giving the earliest signs that the earths diameter has reduced by an increment. Heat transfers not in BTU per hour, per century or millennium -these are small units compared to the happenings in space.

If Lake Superior water is heated to a level that its water temperature has risen by 4.5 ºc, in the last 25 years. Where does that heat comes from? The air above water is cooler, a highly reverse situation for lakes and why no temperature rise was ever reported before. All happening in this quarter of the century. Is a sorcerer at work or is the increased heat under the huge basin, becoming noticeable at the surface now.

Imagine a scientist in the early 20th century predicting an optimistic temperature rise of 1.5ºc on the earths surface within the next hundred years. This rise is the opinion of many scientists, now, for the next century. Portion of heat (in BTU per century) from the core of earth reaches the bedrocks beneath the ice -mountains, the whole range of ice-mountains. Heat melts the ice at whatever temperature it reaches the base of the stout or small mountains. Loss of height in the course of years occurs but in this case a portion of mountain, unlike mount Everest being in air, sink into sub-zero water warmer than ice. The mountain loses both height and stoutness.

In due time, stresses are created to the point that ice- mountains separate. Glaciers split into sections.

Things would be exactly as we see on television now. The preset cameras on ships recording ice-mountains crashing together. Huge pieces of ice like mountains go on floating. There are isles. On a piece of ice the size of a boat we see a lone polar beer appearing haggard, tired observing its surroundings. By instinct perhaps aware that the old habitat is deteriorating. Never again returning back to its early virgin self.

The radius of the un-even earth, is approximately 8000 kilometers. For the hot-core, approach zone and all optimistically take 2000 kilometers off. That leaves 6000 kilometers of earth which serves as insulation for the hot core. This distance is more or less equivalent to the number of kilometers we put on a family car per year.

The thickness of the insulation is not always as it was before. But the core temperature remains constant. There are numerous indications on the surface of earth to confirm, the fact that abuse of the insulation by man are numerous.

When the hot-core cools by measures through centuries it’s diameter or size is bound to becomes smaller. There are cave-ins. Moist trailing the huge mass of the earth collapses at times into the molten lava. Pressure builds up to a level that volcanoes become active. Through history villages and cities have perished because of the on-coming lava from erupting volcanoes. The most historically prominent city being Pompeii. It perished from sight and discovery took place centuries later.

There are hollowness inside the earth that remain in place and in suitable times move like reptiles, weakening the inner structure, causing an earthquake on land and sea or guiding hot lava near to the surface. Geothermical power-plants are friendly with atmosphere, clean energy, not at war with climate. Some countries in this field are front runners. Water brought into contact with the molten rocks, which are more near the surface than the core, generates steam. Turns the turbines in the power-plant. Eventually the steam turns into condensation, to which a little processed water is added. Guided by a small pipe back on the molten rocks steam re-generates continuously and thus the cycle completes. The volcanoes remain dormant because there is no pressure build-up. But heat comes from the core, eventually. More hollowness more damage to the normal heat transfer of earth, with so mach new conduit to the surface. If mount Everest sunk 3.70 meters in 25 years we can be sure that our good planet earth is suffering from osteoporosis.

Some 40 years ago a movie was made, titled A COIN IN THE FOUNTAIN. It was a lyrical love story in tune with the time and of course happening in France. People with a wish dropped a coin in the pond of the fountain. The camera, in a shot, showed so many coins in the shallow pond. Now there are no coins in the pond. If there is one, you have to search for it. Now in hot summers of France people take off as much clothes as they can. They go under the spouting fountain, children and grownups wallow in the water laughingly. They get cool. The short-term wish comes through without spending a coin.

Southern Europe needs air-conditioning. Switzerland with it’s ski mountains, lake Geneva, chalets needs summer time air-conditioning. But we always think the good old days will return. The climate will reverse itself. That will never happen. The problem is serious. Heat comes to the surface at a higher rate now, lingers on if there is no breeze or gets absorbed in the lakes, ponds or any other cool place.

The limits of temperature for human comfort are minute. Between 24º and 26º degrees with slight air-movement to be felt. Without air-movement, within the limit of those temperatures, one will not be comfortable behind desks with a suit and necktie. Now half the continent needs air-conditioning, but decades later it will be required every where. That means colossal energy that eventually produces more heat. Cool in the inside and hot, very hot, outside. That is no gift to a populace that never needed air-conditioning.

Home-kept Encyclopedias are not up-to-date mostly. If you open one and read about the brood of dinosaurs, There is a statement at the end “ It is a mystery ” they perished so abruptly from earth 65 million years ago. It remains no longer a mystery. The late physicist and Nobel Laureate Professor Alvarez (University of California) decades ago in a seminar or in a scientific paper stated that dinosaurs perished from earth because of an earthquake. That opened the door to further scrutiny from other scientists. A big dent on earth was discovered in Mexico. Forensic science discovered it being there millions of years ago to be more exact 65 million years.

A comet had hit the earth creating a near 15 Richter scale earthquake. The Tyrannosaurus dinosaurs with their 6 ton weight on thin legs were the first casualties. The jolts damaged their joints. They buckled. Unable to move or feed themselves the kingly animals remained on earth and died of starvation. Their bones put together a million years later became show-items in museums. The dust cloud enshrouding the earth for 3 years from the impact depleted vegetation. There was no sunshine anymore. The dynasty of dinosaurs along with unknown species perished form earth.

The dust, making such a climatic catastrophe must have had the weight and volume to fill the Grand Canyon. Therefore a chasm as big as Grand Canyon must have remained on earth. But a dent as big as a shallow lake is there, bound to disappear with geological time. Our planet earth is a dwarf compared to what it was. The rate of shrinkage may have been a few inches per century. But things all appear to be different now.

When a great living scientist, astrophysicist Stephen Hawking advises the world inhabitants to find another planet for dwelling, that bears ominous hints. With planet Pluto gone out of existence, a little over a year ago and not a billion years ago, one is bound to think of the fate of the remaining 8 in the solar system. None have a different birth date. Pluto being the smallest, in the cold of the space cooled faster than the rest, split into fragments. The remaining eight are cooling also as they too, are ejections of matter from the sun 4.6 billion years ago. Earth with 6000 kilometers of insulation, sieved with a million drills, imbedded pipes, and empty lakes in which once was full with crude oil. Empty gas fields. Add to those, fields that are going to be tapped in the future. These are all surface things but add the element of time to it. What goes on in the earth when some of the oil pockets or lakes get full again as time goes by, and crude oil is drawn from it again. What is happening in the guts of the earth, while its seven remaining brothers in the solar system are rotating around the sun un-touched.

The most likely planet to go after Pluto, is Earth, but not so early.

There are movements of liquid and material inside the insulation. A damaged insulation means more heat to the surface. How many Tsunamis have we had that did not bring damage to the shores and made no news. Concealed sea water found its way into depth of the earth. China with a gaseous soup over it’s skies is going geothermal. As if steam shooting out from earth into the skies is going to be put in to good use. Rarely this has been the case. Steam seeps out of earth just like oil does. Men go after it with heavy equipment, drilling.

To find clean fuel for cars and industries is evolution. Pollution is a serial killer of man and species. Clean non-polluting energy to be discovered solves many problems on earth except the untouchable: global warming. Clean energy creates as much heat as polluting energy, perhaps more if low efficiency is involved in the work the new found energies are supposed to perform.

You sit in a commercial airliner, snug and comfortable in your seat. The airliner about to rise, an attendant with a yellow item in their hand informs you that if the cabin pressure drops an oxygen mask “ like this ” comes down, and advises the mask to be put on your face for breathing. Air is thin at 33 thousand feet altitude but the engines work fine, no problem with oxygen because velocity of the airliner causes air to ram into the inlet of the engine and pressurize it. But outside it is about 50 °c bellow zero the pilot announces, when the airliner finishes its climb and levels. Why at such a low altitude ( 10 kilometer ) from earth it is so cold with sun shine outside. Sun rays transform into heat when it hits matter. Air molecule when scarce, scarce heat is produced by the sun, insignificant in the thin air. At night the temperature outside the airliner is the same. Why this immense low temperature cold doesn’t reach earth by conduction, or otherwise. What keeps it at bay, is the heat rise from the entire surface of the globe, the source being the hot-core it’s heat ever reaching surface. Sun-heat does not penetrate the earth, not much, that is why the desert is cold at night and so hot during day.

Core-heat coming to the surface keeps the earth vibrant. The sun makes trees come to life after winters but their bodyguard is earth that keeps their roots at above-zero-temperature at all seasons. The golden core that no poem has ever been written about is a diminishing lover of life on earth. The chosen planet may not live to see it’s 5th billion year anniversary but it’s inhabitants have time to accomplish the mission; confirmed by professor Hawking (History of Time) and in a different tone and humor by George Bernard Shaw: “God invented the human mind in order to understand itself.”

In due time the perfected invention would be immune to contamination by, bigotry, fear, prejudice, hatred and hypocrisy. Similar psych diseases on earth will be as none-existent as smallpox.