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     Regarding the uniqueness of planet Earth’s atmosphere and surface, we can not ignore another basic ingredient that sustains life – plain ol' water that we often take for granted.  Although water is rare in the universe, planet Earth is about 75% water and the only known planet with a permanent reserve of liquid water – estimated to have a volume of 340 million cubic miles.

     Water in liquid form has many unique chemical and physical properties which are necessary for life to survive.  One chemical property is the solvent characteristic of water, making it possible for all essential nutrients needed by life to be dissolved and absorbed.  A physical property of water is its transparency to visible light thus marine algae performs photosynthesis below the ocean surface.  Uniquely, water expands when it freezes, preventing our ocean and lakes from freezing from the bottom upward, thereby sustaining cold blooded life in their depths during winter.

     One of the most remarkable properties of water is its high heat-capturing and heat-retaining capacity.  The ocean is less reflective than the land to incoming solar rays and thereby absorbs more of the sun’s energy than an equal area of land.  It also takes much more heat to raise the temperature of a unit mass of seawater by one degree than it does for an equal mass of the continents.  Since the ocean’s average temperature is about 45 degrees Fahrenheit, it will cool the land near the equator and warm the colder polar regions.  Furthermore, ocean currents caused by the earth’s rotation circulate seawater and prevent the oceans near the equator from becoming too hot and the polar seas from completely freezing.

     The oceans regulate planet Earth’s temperature and serve as a reservoir for some very important chemicals.  For example, most of Earth’s carbon dioxide is dissolved in seawater, being in equilibrium with the atmosphere.  In the last couple centuries, large amounts of carbon dioxide have been released via the burning of fossil fuels.  Yet the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has not significantly increased.  Most of the combustion-derived carbon dioxide has been absorbed by the ocean.

     How is it that planet Earth, with its unique surface, atmosphere, water and oceans, unlike all other planets, came into existence?  Mere chance or design?  How is it that planet Earth alone supports life?  Is it merely by accident?  Is it reasonable to conclude that the Big Bang explosion of some self-existent gases resulted in the universe, but with only one planet so unique that only it supports life?  Or is such orderly and unique qualities of planet Earth indicative of intelligent planning by an intelligent and powerful creator.  And the rest of the universe merely projects the majesty of the Creator – The Psalmist of the Bible stated “The heavens and the earth declare the glory of God....” (Psalms 19:1).

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