Sufficiently accurate data on the age of the earth are obtained. How old do you think the earth is? An excerpt characterizing the Age of the Earth

As you know, the solar system includes a number of planets, including the Earth, which is the third in a row from the common celestial body. Our planet is the largest, both in weight and density, and in size, of all the planets in the terrestrial group. Mankind does not know for sure whether there is life in the Universe, therefore we ourselves decided to refer the Earth to the category of unique planets located both in our solar system and outside it.

According to many researchers, our planet was born after the big bang in the order of 4.5 - 6 billion years ago. Almost immediately, by cosmic standards (after 10 million years), the Earth acquired a natural satellite - the Moon, whose rotation to this day occurs around the earth's orbit, exerting a passing effect on the tides. Thanks to the moon, the tilt of the earth's axis became constant.

Over the course of many millennia, the Earth's topography has changed significantly, mostly due to the periodic fall of meteorites. Some of the fallen specimens caused the disappearance of some species of living beings, the formation and change of climate. Researchers, using the fossilized remains of living beings and plants, determined the age of the Earth. Such remains gave impetus to the formation of minerals in the bowels. Studying the history of the existence of our planet, researchers tend to think that the Earth has overcome five main steps of its development. Such stages are called eras.

The most ancient of them - Archean and Proterozoic, got their names from the Greek words ("old, ancient" and "first, initial", respectively). It is generally accepted that in the Proterozoic era, about 3.5 billion years ago. The remaining eras have been studied much better by researchers, since they are younger. three eras: Paleozoic(from the Greek "ancient"), Mesozoic(from Greek "medium") and Cenozoic(from the Greek "new") is usually divided into eras and centuries.

Due to the development in recent years of atomic physics, researchers have been able to reliably determine the age of fossils. In this case, they came to the aid of radioactivity. Through the use of its properties, scientists decompose the atoms of various terrestrial rocks, determine their decay period, which, in turn, can reliably indicate the age characteristics of the studied sample. This method of determining the age of the existence of rocks gave an answer to the question of how many years the Earth exists.

The history of our planet still holds many mysteries. Scientists from various fields of natural science have contributed to the study of the development of life on Earth.

It is believed that the age of our planet is about 4.54 billion years. This entire time period is usually divided into two main stages: Phanerozoic and Precambrian. These stages are called eons or eonoteme. Eons, in turn, are divided into several periods, each of which is distinguished by a set of changes that have taken place in the geological, biological, atmospheric state of the planet.

1. Precambrian, or Cryptozoic- this is an eon (time interval of the development of the Earth), covering about 3.8 billion years. That is, the Precambrian is the development of the planet from the moment of formation, the formation of the earth's crust, the proto-ocean and the emergence of life on Earth. By the end of the Precambrian, highly organized organisms with a developed skeleton were already widespread on the planet.

The eon includes two more eonotemes - katarche and archaea. The latter, in turn, includes 4 eras.

1. Katarchaeus- this is the time of the formation of the Earth, but there was still neither the core nor the earth's crust. The planet was still a cold cosmic body. Scientists suggest that during this period there was already water on Earth. The Catarchean lasted about 600 million years.

2. Archaea covers a period of 1.5 billion years. During this period, there was no oxygen on Earth yet, deposits of sulfur, iron, graphite, and nickel were being formed. The hydrosphere and the atmosphere were a single vapor-gas shell that enveloped the globe in a dense cloud. The sun's rays practically did not penetrate through this veil, so darkness reigned on the planet. 2.1 2.1. Eoarchean- this is the first geological era, which lasted about 400 million years. The most important event of the Eoarchean is the formation of the hydrosphere. But there was still little water, the reservoirs existed separately from each other and did not yet merge into the world ocean. At the same time, the earth's crust becomes solid, although asteroids are still bombarding the Earth. At the end of the Eoarchean, the first supercontinent in the history of the planet, Vaalbara, is formed.

2.2 Paleoarchaean- the next era, which also lasted approximately 400 million years. During this period, the core of the Earth is formed, the magnetic field strength increases. A day on the planet lasted only 15 hours. But the oxygen content in the atmosphere increases due to the activity of bacteria that have appeared. The remains of these first forms of the Paleoarchean era of life have been found in Western Australia.

2.3 Mesoarchean also lasted about 400 million years. In the Mesoarchean era, our planet was covered by a shallow ocean. Land areas were small volcanic islands. But already during this period, the formation of the lithosphere begins and the mechanism of plate tectonics starts. At the end of the Mesoarchean, the first ice age occurs, during which snow and ice form for the first time on Earth. Biological species are still represented by bacteria and microbial life forms.

2.4 Neoarchean- the final era of the Archean eon, the duration of which is about 300 million years. Colonies of bacteria at this time form the first stromatolites (limestone deposits) on Earth. The most important event of the Neoarchean is the formation of oxygen photosynthesis.

II. Proterozoic- one of the longest time periods in the history of the Earth, which is usually divided into three eras. During the Proterozoic, the ozone layer first appears, the world ocean reaches almost its present volume. And after the longest Huron glaciation, the first multicellular life forms appeared on Earth - mushrooms and sponges. The Proterozoic is usually divided into three eras, each of which contained several periods.

3.1 Paleo-Proterozoic- the first era of the Proterozoic, which began 2.5 billion years ago. At this time, the lithosphere is fully formed. But the former forms of life, due to the increase in oxygen content, practically died out. This period is called the oxygen catastrophe. By the end of the era, the first eukaryotes appear on Earth.

3.2 Mesoproterozoic lasted approximately 600 million years. The most important events of this era: the formation of continental masses, the formation of the supercontinent Rodinia and the evolution of sexual reproduction.

3.3 Neo-proterozoic. During this era, Rodinia breaks up into about 8 parts, the super-ocean of Mirovia ceases to exist, and at the end of the era, the Earth is covered with ice almost to the equator. In the Neoproterozoic era, living organisms for the first time begin to acquire a hard shell, which will later serve as the basis of the skeleton.

III. Paleozoic- the first era of the Phanerozoic eon, which began approximately 541 million years ago and lasted about 289 million years. This is the era of the emergence of ancient life. The supercontinent Gondwana unites the southern continents, a little later the rest of the land joins it and Pangea appears. Climatic zones begin to form, and flora and fauna are represented mainly by marine species. Only towards the end of the Paleozoic does the development of land begin, and the first vertebrates appear.

The Paleozoic era is conditionally divided into 6 periods.

1. Cambrian period lasted 56 million years. During this period, the main rocks are formed, the mineral skeleton appears in living organisms. And the most important event of the Cambrian is the appearance of the first arthropods.

2. Ordovician period- the second period of the Paleozoic, which lasted 42 million years. This is the era of the formation of sedimentary rocks, phosphorites and oil shale. The organic world of the Ordovician is represented by marine invertebrates and blue-green algae.

3. Silurian period covers the next 24 million years. At this time, almost 60% of living organisms that existed before die out. But the first cartilaginous and bone fish in the history of the planet appear. On land, the Silurian is marked by the appearance of vascular plants. Supercontinents converge and form Laurasia. By the end of the period, ice melting was noted, the sea level rose, and the climate became milder.

4 Devonian is characterized by the rapid development of various forms of life and the development of new ecological niches. Devon covers a time interval of 60 million years. The first terrestrial vertebrates, spiders, and insects appear. Land animals develop lungs. Although fish still dominate. The kingdom of flora of this period is represented by ferns, horsetails, club mosses and gosperms.

5. Carboniferous period often referred to as carbon. At this time, Laurasia collides with Gondwana and the new supercontinent Pangea appears. A new ocean is also formed - Tethys. This is the time when the first amphibians and reptiles appeared.

6. Permian period- the last period of the Paleozoic, which ended 252 million years ago. It is believed that at this time a large asteroid fell to Earth, which led to significant climate change and the extinction of almost 90% of all living organisms. Most of the land is covered with sand, the most extensive deserts appear that have only existed in the entire history of the Earth's development.

IV. Mesozoic- the second era of the Phanerozoic eon, which lasted almost 186 million years. At this time, the continents acquire almost modern outlines. A warm climate contributes to the rapid development of life on Earth. Giant ferns disappear, and angiosperms appear to replace them. The Mesozoic is the era of dinosaurs and the appearance of the first mammals.

The Mesozoic era is divided into three periods: Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous.

1. Triassic period lasted a little over 50 million years. At this time, Pangea begins to split, and the inland seas gradually become smaller and dry up. The climate is mild, the zones are not pronounced. Nearly half of land plants are disappearing as deserts spread. And in the realm of fauna, the first warm-blooded and terrestrial reptiles appear, which became the ancestors of dinosaurs and birds.

2 Jurassic covers a gap of 56 million years. A humid and warm climate reigned on Earth. The land is covered with thickets of ferns, pines, palms, cypresses. Dinosaurs reign on the planet, and numerous mammals have so far been distinguished by their small stature and thick hair.

3 Cretaceous- the longest period of the Mesozoic, lasting almost 79 million years. The split of the continents is practically coming to an end, the Atlantic Ocean is significantly increasing in volume, and ice sheets are forming at the poles. An increase in the water mass of the oceans leads to the formation of a greenhouse effect. At the end of the Cretaceous, a catastrophe occurs, the causes of which are still not clear. As a result, all dinosaurs and most species of reptiles and gymnosperms became extinct.

V. Cenozoic- this is the era of animals and Homo sapiens, which began 66 million years ago. The continents at this time acquired their modern shape, Antarctica occupied the south pole of the Earth, and the oceans continued to grow. Plants and animals that survived the catastrophe of the Cretaceous period found themselves in a completely new world. Unique communities of lifeforms began to form on each continent.

The Cenozoic era is divided into three periods: Paleogene, Neogene and Quaternary.

1. Paleogene period ended approximately 23 million years ago. At that time, a tropical climate reigned on Earth, Europe was hiding under evergreen tropical forests, and deciduous trees grew only in the north of the continents. It was during the Paleogene period that the rapid development of mammals takes place.

2. Neogene period covers the next 20 million years of the planet's development. Whales and bats appear. And, although saber-toothed tigers and mastodons still roam the earth, the fauna is increasingly acquiring modern features.

3. Quaternary period began more than 2.5 million years ago and continues to this day. Two major events characterize this time period: the Ice Age and the advent of man. The Ice Age completely completed the formation of the climate, flora and fauna of the continents. And the appearance of man marked the beginning of civilization.

The history of the Earth is imprinted on its stones. In places like the Grand Canyon, the water that erodes its walls exposes the layers of rock from which the walls formed.

Because the old layers lie beneath the new ones, geologists can get some idea of ​​how the earth's crust was formed. But knowing that the deeper layers are older does not tell us anything about their absolute age, that is, how old they are.

How was the age of the Earth calculated?

Scientists in the 19th century tried to calculate the age of the Earth based on the timing of rock formations in recent times. But they could only guess. According to their results, the age of our planet ranges from 3 million years to 1.5 billion years. The spread is 500 times, such a result cannot, of course, be called accurate. Naturally, another way was required. Scientists wanted to find a clock that, being wound at the time of creation, would continue to run until our time. By looking at such a clock, one could accurately determine the age of the Earth.

How can you accurately calculate the age of the Earth?

And it turned out that such clocks exist: in rocks, trees and in the depths of the ocean. These natural clocks are radioactive elements that decay over time to form other elements. Determining the age of rocks or fossils using radioactive elements is called radiometric dating. A strictly defined part of the radioactive material decays per unit time. This fraction does not depend on the mass of the initial radioactive substance.

radiocarbon method

Let's take radiocarbon dating as an example. It is based on the fact that living organisms absorb both ordinary carbon-12 and its radioactive isotope, carbon-14, from air and water. It is assumed that the ratio of these two isotopes in water and air remains constant.

It is in this ratio that carbon isotopes are found in living organisms. When an organism ceases its mortal existence, after many years, the amount of ordinary carbon in its remains remains the same as it was at the time of death, and the radioactive isotope decays (carbon-14). This isotope decays by half within 5730 years. So by measuring the ratio of two carbon isotopes in the remains of a once living organism, scientists can determine the age of these remains.

Interesting fact: radioactive elements can serve as natural clocks because radioactive decay follows strict time patterns.

Checking the results

Of course, none of the dating methods can be considered completely reliable. Therefore, geologists, to be sure, examine several radioactive elements, such as uranium or thorium, in addition to carbon-14. Scientists verify their results by running duplicate tests with different radioactive isotopes on the same material. Sometimes the two methods give different results. For example, geologists took samples of a coral reef off the coast of Barbados to study.

They measured the carbon content, as well as uranium and thorium. If the coral is "young", that is, not older than 9000 years, then all methods give the same results. But if the coral turned out to be older, then the results may not be unambiguous. The uranium-thorium method has established the age of the coral at 20,000 years, while the carbon method has only 17,000 years. What is the reason for such a big difference? And which method is more accurate? Scientists believe that the uranium-thorium method is more accurate, because the radiocarbon method has previously given ambiguous or even questionable results.

Reliability of age measurement methods

The radiometric dating method is not completely reliable. Therefore, scientists examine two different radioactive elements of the same material. The reason may be that, for example, in recent years, the content of carbon-14 in the atmosphere has increased, which means that it could change in one direction or another in the past. If the ratio of carbon-14 to carbon-12 has changed, then the radiocarbon method cannot reliably determine the age of the remains of ancient organisms, since it is based on the fact that the content of radioactive carbon in the atmosphere and water remains unchanged.

Age of the Earth, Moon and Solar System

The half-life of uranium is 4.5 billion years. Measurements of the age of some of the rocks of the Earth by the uranium-thorium method have shown that they are about 3.8 billion years old. How to find out how early our planet formed? Examining samples of lunar soil brought by astronauts from the lunar expedition, scientists found that their age is about 4.6 billion years, as well as the age of meteorites that arrived on Earth from nearby regions of the solar system. Therefore, scientists believe that the entire solar system, including the Moon and the Sun, formed approximately 4.6 billion years ago.

If you find an error, please highlight a piece of text and click Ctrl+Enter.

We will never be able to give an exact answer to this question. For a long time, man has been interested in the question: “How old is the Earth?”. The answers to this question have come down to us in the form of myths, legends, traditions. From a scientific standpoint, scientists began to look for an answer a little more than four hundred years ago, when the heliocentric theory of the existence of the solar system appeared and began to strengthen. To find out how old the planet Earth is, it was first necessary to answer the question: “How did the solar system form, one of the elements of which is our planet Earth?”. It is the third planet from the Sun. Currently, the most famous are two hypotheses of the appearance of the Sun and planets, which can tell us how old the Earth is. .

The first, called the nebular hypothesis, states that before the formation of the solar system, there was a gigantic hot gas cloud in space, which decreased in size, throwing out huge clots of gas. The gas cloud, decreasing in size, turned into the Sun, and huge clots of gas, concentrating, turned into planets, one of which was our Earth.

Another theory that also tried to clarify the question of how old the Earth is is called planetesimal. According to this theory, before the appearance of the Sun and the Earth in space, there were huge accumulations of relatively small in size relatively solid bodies, which scientists call planetesimals, and the Sun was in the middle of this mass. When a large star flew near this cluster of bodies, parts of this mass were torn off under the influence of a massive star. These parts, in turn, began to attract small planetesimals. It's like snow sticking to a big snowball in winter. So, according to this theory, the planets appeared, and our Earth is one of them.

Which of these two theories is more correct, we do not know, but regardless of this, astronomers, answering the question of how old the Earth is, calculated that it is about five and a half billion years old. But in science it is so accepted that, in order to consider information true, confirmation from other sources is necessary. More accurate information was obtained using the radiometry method. According to these data, the age of the Earth was established as 4.54 billion years ± 1%. As a result, and the development of radiometry methods, it turned out that some samples of minerals on Earth are more than one billion years old. In Australia, they found zircon crystals, the age of which was determined using this method and it turned out to be approximately 4 billion 404 million years old! Based on these facts, and also taking into account the mass and luminosity of the Sun and other stars, scientists came to the conclusion that the age of the solar system and, accordingly, the Earth cannot be much older than the age of these crystals.

In meteorites there are concretions with a high content of calcium and aluminum. These are the most ancient samples known to science formed in the solar system. Scientists determine their age as 4.567 billion years. This will be the upper bound, which will help us answer the question of how old the Earth is.

Scientists suggest that about ten million years after the appearance of the planet Earth, it had its own satellite - the Moon, which began to revolve around the Earth and at the same time influence the seas and oceans, the speed of rotation of our planet. At the same time, the inclination of the Earth's axis became constant.

Over the billions of years of existence, it has changed significantly, including due to the fall of meteorites, the largest of which could influence climate change on the planet, lead to the formation of lakes, islands and seas.

What is the age of the earth? How old is the Earth: thousands or billions?

According to the Bible, Adam, the first man, was created on the sixth day of the existence of the planet Earth. Accordingly, we can calculate the age of the Earth for the chronology of mankind. Assuming that the calculations of Genesis are correct, it can be argued that the six days of the creation of the Earth described there are a literal 24 hour day, devoid of any chronological gaps.

Based on the genealogy of Adam and all his descendants, up to Abraham, recorded in the fifth and eleventh chapters of Genesis, who make up a single family line, we can calculate the age of our planet. By determining where Abraham was chronologically in history, and adding the time periods described in Genesis, it becomes clear that our earth is about 6,000 years old, plus or minus a few centuries.

So what about the most popular assumption, that the Earth is about 4.6 billion years old, accepted by most scientists and studied in the world's most reputable institutions? This age has been determined by two main methods: radiometric and geological dating. Scientists who support the younger age (6,000 years) insist that radiometric dating cannot be considered reliable due to the fact that it relies on a number of incorrect assumptions, and geological dating uses circular inferences. They also point to the debunking of myths associated with the "ancient Earth", such as the popular misconception that stratification, petrification, the formation of diamonds, coal, oil, stalactites, stalagmites, etc. it takes a lot of time. Scientists who support the theory of the “young planet” present their evidence, instead of the arguments of their opponents that they refute. They admit that they are a minority today, but they are confident that over time, more scientists will reconsider their positions on the assumption of an "ancient Earth" that is ruling in modern times.

In principle, the age of the Earth cannot be accurately determined. Whether it's 6,000 years or 4.6 billion years (and everything in between), both of these theories are based on guesswork. People who adhere to the version about 4.6 billion years believe in the reliability of the radiometric method and in the impossibility of anything that could prevent the natural decay of radioisotopes. Those who adhere to the 6,000 year version believe that the Bible is true, and that there are other factors that explain the "observable" age of the earth (which we can easily track), such as a global flood or the creation of a universe by the Lord that "seems" to exist for a very long time. time. For example, we can take Adam and Eve, whom God created as adults and full-fledged people. If a doctor had to test them on the day they were created, he would probably assume that they were, say, 20 years old, although they were not even a day old. Be that as it may, there will always be reasons to believe in God's Word above the atheistic speeches of modern scientists with an evolutionist worldview.