SCIENTISTS HAVE A NEW THEORY TO EXPLAIN WHY EARTH HAS REMAINED A LONE OUTPOST FOR LIFE
IN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM.
EARTH HAS STAYED LIVABLE, DESPITE NATURAL EVENTS THAT ROBBED NEIGHBORING PLANETS OF
THE ABILITY TO HOST AND SUSTAIN LIFE.
RESEARCHERS SAY THAT'S BECAUSE OF THE GEOLOGIC CYCLES EARTH HAS GONE THROUGH FOR MILLIONS
OF YEARS AND IT'S STILL GOING THROUGH.
ON ASSIGNMENT'S PHILIP ALEXIOU TALKED WITH VOA SCIENCE BLOGGER RICK PANTALEO FOR MORE.
CHECK IT OUT.
WHAT'S THE MOST REVEALING PART ABOUT THIS REPORT?
WELL, I THINK TO ME THE MOST REVEALING PART OF IT IS HOW AMAZING NATURAL GEOLOGIC CYCLES
CONTROL THE CLIMATE OF THE EARTH BY THE ABSORPTION AND RELEASE OF CARBON DIOXIDE AND IT'S BEEN
DOING IT FOR MILLIONS OF YEARS.
AND IN THIS PARTICULAR STUDY WHAT THEY WOUND UP FINDING WAS THAT THE ROCKS THAT ARE THE
RESULT OF THE UPLIFTING OF THE MOUNTAINS SUCH AS THE ANDES MOUNTAINS AND THE HIMALAYAS AND
SO FORTH THROWS OFF A LOT OF ROCKS AND MINERALS AS THE MOUNTAINS ARE EMERGING AND THESE ROCKS
ABSORB CARBON DIOXIDE.
NOW, THE OPPOSITE OF WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IS IF THE CARBON DIOXIDE, ALL THE CO2 WAS TAKEN
AWAY THERE WOULD BE NO GREENHOUSE EFFECT.
AND WE WOULD ALL FREEZE TO DEATH.
WE WOULD BE AS COLD AS MARS.
EXCEPT THAT MARS DOES NOT HAVE AN ATMOSPHERE AND WE DO.
BUT, WE WOULD BE COLD.
SO, AT THE SAME TIME THAT IT ABSORBS CO2, ACCORDING TO THE STUDY, THESE ROCKS ALSO SLOWLY
RELEASE CO2 BACK INTO THE EARTH, STORED CO2 IT RELEASES SLOWLY.
BUT THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR MILLIONS OF YEARS.
SO SCIENTISTS THEN WANTED TO FIND OUT IF IT WAS UNIQUE BECAUSE THEY WERE IN THE ANDES
MOUNTAINS AREA, THEY WANTED TO FIND OUT IF THIS WAS UNIQUE JUST TO THE ANDES MOUNTAINS
AREA THEY WERE STUDYING, SO THEY DID, CHECK DATA FROM OTHER AREAS SUCH AS THE HIMALAYAS
AND FOUND THAT THIS PHENOMENA IS GLOBAL IN ASPECT.
AND THEY ALSO WANTED TO CHECK OTHER RECORDS TOO SO THEY CHECKED MARINE RECORDS OF OCEAN
BLOCKS THAT DATE BACK MILLIONS OF YEARS, AND KEEP IN MIND IF WE DIDN'T HAVE CO2 IN THE
ATMOSPHERE, NO GREENHOUSE EFFECT, THEN AND NO LIFE ON EARTH.
NOW WHAT HAPPENS FOR EXAMPLE, I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS RELATED TO THIS REPORT, WHEN SAY
MT.
PINATUBO IN THE PHILIPPINES ERUPTS AND SPEWS ASH AND PLUME AROUND THE EARTH AND SCIENTISTS
FROM THE NATIONAL OCEANIC ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION THEY SAY THAT IT BASICALLY, THAT THAT EVENT
COOLED THE EARTH FOR A WHILE, IS THERE ANY RELATION TO THAT SORT OF EVENT COMPARED TO
WHAT THIS REPORT SAYS.
I WOULD SAY NO.
BECAUSE WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT WITH THE RELEASE OF VOLCANIC ASH, AND VOLCANIC ASH
COULD BE SO FINE, BUT WHAT IT DOES IS IT SORT OF CREATES A SUNSCREEN IN THE ATMOSPHERE OF
FINE ASH AND WHAT HAPPENS IS SUN IS FILTERED OUT AND WHEN YOU'RE FILTERING SUNLIGHT YOU'RE
NOT GETTING THE FULL EFFECT OF THE SUN.
ONE OF THE THINGS I ASKED MARK TORRES WHO IS MATTER OF FACT, THE LEAD AUTHOR OF THE
STUDY, I ASKED AND I SAID, YOU KNOW, WERE THESE NATURAL PROCESSES PLAY WITH MANMADE
CO2 SUCH AS WHAT WE ARE EXPERIENCING NOW WITH THE INCREASE OF CO2 IN THE ATMOSPHERE AND
THE WAY HE TOLD ME IS, YEAH, BUT IT'S GOING TO TAKE A LONG TIME SINCE THE ROCKS AND THE
NATURAL PROCESSES TAKES A DIFFERENT TIME TABLE ALTOGETHER.
IT WILL TAKE MILLIONS OF YEARS BUT WE WON'T KNOW IF IT WILL FULLY COUNTERACT THE CARBON
DIOXIDE THAT WE'RE PUTTING OUT.
BUT RIGHT NOW IT'S BALANCED.
WELL.
IT DEPENDS ON WHAT SIDE OF THE ARGUMENT YOU ARE ON ON CLIMATE CHANGE BUT RIGHT NOW IT
SEEMS AS THOUGH CO2, ACCORDING TO A LOT OF STUDIES THERE'S A GREAT AMOUNT ACCUMULATING
IN THE ATMOSPHERE.
OUR THANKS TO VOA SCIENCE BLOGGER RICK PANTALEO.
IT'S TIME FOR ANOTHER BREAK.
COMING UP: THE PUSH FOR RELIGIOUS FREEDOMS COLLIDES WITH HEALTH CARE REFORM.
YOU'RE WATCHING ON ASSIGNMENT.