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wrote in
: On 25 Aug 2003 17:23:14 +1200, Llanzlan Klazmon The 15th wrote: wrote in : On Sat, 23 Aug 2003 18:33:01 -0400 (EDT), (Shirley) wrote: From my 13 y/o grandson: What would happen to earth if there was no moon? Thank you. Well most probably the marine life as we know it would not exist. Unlikely. Disagree totally see http://www.science.plymouth.ac.uk/de...malta/Eco5.htm http://www.saintbrendan.com/cdnmar01/sexonbeach.html http://www.saintbrendan.com/cdnapril00/divplan4.html http://www.nps.gov/olym/edtide.htm http://www.vancouverisland.com/Wildl...vents/thechang ingtides.html These are just a few that i have read, taken as a whole the picture painted is one where the Moon is Criticial to the worlds ocean ecosystems. That is only because life around the seashore has adapted to a certain degree of tide. If the tides were suddenly reduced to solar tides only, it would indeed have a big effect in the short term but organisms would adapt pretty quickly. Even in lakes where the tide is insignificant, there is plenty of viable ecosystems. If nothing else at a very simplistic level, the tides caused by the moon have a very simple function, they oxygenate the water. Actually waves do that, not tides. Also check out the recent research done in the Bay of Fundy which I believe has the largest tidal difference in the world. Look at the role of clams and molusces in filtering the oceans pollutants. Agreed. Also the "flushing out" action of tides would be somewhat reduced without the moon. However that said whilst we disagree on this, in a way it is a moot point, we have the moon. and anything else is just speculation. Yes. It will be interesting to compare if we do ever find earth like planets that don't have a large moon. But as with everyone in nature its a very fine balance, change one thing, and everything else changes. Taken as a whole, and with current knowledge, Life on earth only exists within a very small spectrum, and if you change just one part of that, then No life would exist. This I disagree with. Life is actually much more resilient than you think. Life has invaded virtually every part of the earths surface, from hot springs to deserts to frozen wastes, the deepest parts of the oceans, even in rocks deep underground. Looking for astro bits and pieces? http://members.ebay.co.uk/aboutme/orpheus1959 |
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"Shirley" wrote in message
... From my 13 y/o grandson: What would happen to earth if there was no moon? Thank you. 'Lo Shirley -- A good read that even i could understand is... _The Tragedy of the Moon_ by Isaac Asimov ISBN: 0-385-07221-X Library of Congress CCN: 73-79641 One thing Asimov does is speculate on what would have happened if it had been Venus instead of Earth that got the large Moon as a satellite. Really good stuff! happy days and... starry starry nights! -- A Universe of Beauty Our Hubble often shows, Let's not forget our duty To pitch the way it Glows! Paine Ellsworth |
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Point your grandson to this..
http://curious.astro.cornell.edu/que...php?number=104 "Painius" wrote in message ... "Shirley" wrote in message ... From my 13 y/o grandson: What would happen to earth if there was no moon? Thank you. 'Lo Shirley -- A good read that even i could understand is... _The Tragedy of the Moon_ by Isaac Asimov ISBN: 0-385-07221-X Library of Congress CCN: 73-79641 One thing Asimov does is speculate on what would have happened if it had been Venus instead of Earth that got the large Moon as a satellite. Really good stuff! happy days and... starry starry nights! -- A Universe of Beauty Our Hubble often shows, Let's not forget our duty To pitch the way it Glows! Paine Ellsworth |
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