Researched by:Ashraf Salmawi
Part Two
The theories that account
for the formation of the planets have changed radically. Today most astronomers
believe that the Earth and the other planets originally formed out of a nebula
that surrounded the Sun. This is thought to have occurred five billion years
ago. Studies of radioactive material on earth show that it could not be much
older than this, for if it were, that material would have all decayed and turned
into lead by now. This estimation of the age of the earth is also confirmed by
studies of the ages of rocks on earth. The oldest rocks, at Isua in Greenland
and on the river Limpogo in South Africa, were formed at least 3.8 billion years
ago. (New views on an old planet, Tjeerd H. Van Andel.)
This theory is known as the 'Modern Nebular
Hypothesis' after the modification of the old 'Nebular Hypothesis'. But since
the nebula consisted primarily of hydrogen and helium, this hypothesis does not
seem to offer a satisfactory explanation as to how the heavier elements have
formed on earth and also on the other rocky inner planets (Mercury, Venus and
Mars). Certainly the outer gaseous planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune and Uranus)
are very similar in composition to the sun. The major proportion of their mass,
like the sun, consists of hydrogen and helium and thus their formation is in
line with the 'Nebular Hypothesis'. It is the presence of the heavier elements
on the rocky planets that is still not satisfactorily explained.
The Quran presents a truly remarkable piece of
information concerning the formation of these heavier elements. This information
seems to account for the puzzle that remained unsolved by the 'Nebular
Hypothesis'
In the Quran it is stated that iron was introduced on
earth at a later stage than when the earth was initially formed.
"…….and We have sent down iron, in it
is great strength" The Quran 57:25
The words "sent down"
clearly indicate the prior existence of the earth . This startling information
confirms the 'Nebular Hypothesis' and solves it's
remaining puzzle. The remarkable fact here is that the Quran not only is an
agreement with a modern theory, but that the modern theory itself depends on the
Quran for it's validity !
The formation of the heavy elements poses further
intriguing questions. The atoms of these elements, like other elements, are
comprised of a nucleus orbited by a number of electrons. The nucleus contains a
number of protons, which are positively charged, and a number of neutrons which
are neutral. But since like charges repel each other while opposites attract, we
might expect the nucleus to split apart, with every proton trying to get away
from every other proton. What is it then that holds them together ? Gravity, due
to the mass of the protons and neutrons, is certainly insufficient. It is
believed that there is a strong binding force, a thousand times a million
multiplied by itself six times, stronger than gravity. In numerical terms it is
10 followed by 39 zeros ! This binding force gets larger the heavier the element
is to the extent that it is believed that the binding force inside the atoms of
iron is larger than the free energy available in the solar system! Again this
seems to suggest that these heavier elements could not have been formed in the
solar system, and thus is in line with the information contained in the Quran.
These sub-atomic particles are also mentioned in the
Quran:
"There isn't hidden (from God) the
least little atom in the heavens or earth, nor what is smaller (than the atom)."
34:3
This Quranic verse clearly indicates that the atom is
not the smallest form of substance but that there are particles smaller than the
atom. This might seem common knowledge today but was not so in the 7th century.
The 'Modern Nebular Hypothesis' like previous
theories, has also faced difficulties in determining how the planets received
enough angular momentum, that is, sufficient energy to set them orbiting around
the sun at the speeds they do. When a man-made satellite is placed into orbit a
series of precise adjustments have to be executed in order to induce a balance
between the acting forces (gravity, centrifugal force , distances, speed……… etc.
). This balance is essential in order to place the satellite into orbit. Without
these very precise adjustments, and if the satellite is left unguided, it would
either fall back to earth or be lost forever into outer space.
When we think of the orbits of the planets, the orbits
of the infinite number of the stars and all the galaxies, we realise that they
are all the result of immaculately precise balances. These very accurate
balances are clear indications of the existence of a supreme governing power
that is responsible for creating as well as sustaining the universe. The Quran
speaks of these fine balances:
"………and the sky He raised and set the
balance" 55:7
The earth, having been formed, was ordained to very
precise specifications; those necessary for the development and support of life
on earth. The following are examples:
1) If the size of the earth was
somewhat less than it's present size, say the size of the moon, it's gravity
would have been much weaker. This would result in the failure of the earth to
retain it's atmosphere or water vapour, and thus no life would have been
possible. If the size of the earth, on the other hand was larger than it's
present size, say the size of Saturn or Jupiter, the gravity would have been too
strong. This would cause the atmosphere to be compressed to much lower heights
resulting in much higher air pressure. This would also abolish life on earth.
2) If the sun was closer to the earth
(present distance being 93 million miles) the temperature on earth would rise
sharply causing the evaporation of oceans and rivers and the extermination of
all life. If the sun was much further away the earth would freeze to death.
3) If the moon was closer to the earth,
the tides would rise causing gigantic waves that would destroy life on islands
and coastal areas. If the moon was further away from the earth the tides would
come to a standstill leading to the stagnation of seas , the result of which
would be grave damage to marine life. These very precise measurements of such
variables as distance, mass, speed………..etc. are referred to in the following
verses:
"The sun and the moon precisely
computed……." 5:55
4) The earth spins on it's axis once
every 24 hours. If it didn't spin, the oceans would empty all their waters and
if it spun much faster it would disperse into empty space.
The spinning movement is also responsible for the night and
day, without which one half of the earth would be under continuous sunlight and
heat up excessively while the other half would be submerged in total darkness
and freeze to death.
The Spinning of the earth is also mentioned in the Quran:
"He (God) coils the night onto the day
and coils the day onto the night" 39:5
The use of the word "coils" was
once thought to be a purely poetic one, but today's astronomical knowledge
confirms that the word "coils" is scientificallly
very accurate in describing the spinning movement of the earth.
5) Today we know that the Earth is
oval shaped, bulging at the equator. Thirteen centuries ago it was thought that
the earth was flat. It was not known then that the earth was round, let alone
oval.
The Quran again states that the earth is oval:
"and the Earth, after that, He made it
like a deheya" 79:30
The word "deheya" in Arabic
means an egg, hence the oval shape. But the verse also includes a further
remarkably accurate scientific fact. The words 'after
that' clearly indicate that the earth acquired the oval shape at a later
stage to it's formation. Modern science will testify that the bulging of the
earth at the equator is a result of the continuous spinning of the earth on it's
axis, and thus had to occur sometime after the formation of the earth. The earth
spins on it's axis at a speed of one thousand kilometres per hour.
6) The earth rotates round the sun
once every 365.25 days. Whilst doing so it is tilted on it's axis at an angle of
33 degrees. As a result , the seasons occur making it possible for the
habitation of the planet. If the earth was not tilted on its axis the poles
would have been submerged in continuous cold darkness preventing the seasonal
thaw of the polar ice. The accumulating ice would eventually result in non
shifting frozen poles and little water elsewhere.
The rotation of the earth around the sun was not known in the
7th century. At that time it was still thought of the earth as a non moving
planet at the centre of the universe. Due to the apparent movement of the sun,
moon and stars in the sky, it was thought that they are moving around the earth.
The movement of the earth in space is confirmed in the
following verse:
"When you look at the mountains, you
think that they are standing still. But they are moving, like the clouds. Such
is the manufacture of God, who perfected everything. He is fully Cognizant of
everything you do." 27:88
Since the earth is moving in space thus everthing on earth is
moving with it, including the mountains.
7) If the earth's crust had been
thicker than it's present thickness all the oxygen would have been absorbed into
the earth. Without oxygen no life would be possible. Similarly, if the oceans
were much deeper, all the oxygen and carbon dioxide would have been absorbed
into the oceans with similar results.
All these precise specifications were referred to in the
following verse:
"It is He who created the heavens and
the earth in true proportions." 6:73
THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE
The Earth's atmosphere, so vital to life on the
planet, extends one thousand kilometres into space. The following are some of
its numerous functions :
1) The atmosphere acts as a protective
shield that absorbs and disperses the continuous shower of meteors that fall
into the Earth's gravitational field. If the atmosphere was thinner than it's
present thickness these meteors would find their way to the surface of the earth
causing fires and widespread damage. The Quran asserts this function:
"and we made the Samaa (sky) a secure
ceiling" 21:32
The words "Samaa" and
"Samawaat" are used in the Quran in different meanings. The word
"Samawaat" (skies), which is the plural of
"Samaa" (sky) is always used to denote the heavens
or the universe as a whole. The word "Samaa" is
usually used to denote our immediate sky or the earth's atmosphere.
As an example of the two uses, we read:
a- "God created the 'samawat'
(heavens) and the earth, truthfully. This provides a sufficient proof for the
believers." 29:44
Here the word "samawat" (plural)
means heavens or universes.
b- "He (God) sends down
from the 'samaa' (sky) water for your drink, and to grow trees for your
benefit." 16:10
Here the word "samaa" (singular)
is used to mean our immediate sky.
2) The atmosphere contains the gases
necessary for sustaining the life of all animals and plants, namely oxygen and
carbon dioxide.
Another scientific knowledge that was referred to in the
Quran centuries before man's actual discovery of it relates to the composition
of the atmosphere. It is now known that the higher we ascend in the sky the less
air we would find, and thus the less oxygen so vital for respiration. A person
flying at great heights in aircraft or air balloon would feel a sharp
contraction of the lungs causing pain.
"Whoever God wills to guide, He opens
his chest and whoever He wills to leave straying He makes his chest tight and
constricted as if he was ascending in the sky." 6:125
At the time of the revelation of the Quran in the 7th
century, no one would have known that ascending in the sky would cause
constriction and pain in the chest, simply because it was way before the age of
air flight (ascending in the sky).
3) The atmosphere acts as an
air-conditioner that helps regulate the temperature on the surface of the earth
so as to remain within the levels necessary to sustain life.
4) The atmosphere acts as a medium for
the movement of clouds to supply rain to all the corners of the globe and
maintain all types of vegetation.
"Do you not realize that God drives the
clouds, then then, gathers them together, then piles them on each other, then
you see the rain coming out of them?" 24:43
"God is the One who sends the winds to
stir up clouds, then we drive them towards barren lands, and revive such lands
after they were dead. Thus is the resurrection." 35:9
5) The atmosphere acts as a medium in
which sound can travel. Without the atmosphere we would not hear any sounds.
That is because sound, unlike light, does not travel through vacuum.
6) Without the atmosphere there would
be no air pressure. Without air pressure blood would explode out of our bodies.
7) The earth's atmosphere acts as a
high altitude mirror that returns what is useful back to the surface of the
earth like:
a) The intra-red radiation is reflected back which
provides global warmth.
b) Water vapour which rises and forms clouds is
returned as useful rain.
c) Tele-communication waves (Radio, T.V., …etc)
are reflected back making it possible for someone , say in London, to receive
signals transmitted in Tokyo. The Quran asserts this function of the atmosphere:
"and the sky that returns"
8) The atmosphere contains the Ozone
layer which is so vital to our existence.
The Ozone Layer
The sun, like any other star, radiates at a wide range
of wavelengths. The visible waves, which we call sunlight, are only a portion of
that radiation, and that light lies between the ultra-violet and the infra-red
rays. The sun also radiates at wave lengths longer than what the human eye can
see and that is in the infra-red and the radio wave regions, and also in
wavelengths shorter than we can see in the ultra-violet, X-ray and Gamma Ray
regions.
These short waves ( X-ray and Gamma rays ) are
completely blocked off in the upper layers of the earth's atmosphere. While most
of the ultra-violet rays are absorbed in the ozone layer. Only a small amount of
ultra-violet rays can penetrate, and these are the rays that cause us sunburn,
and in excess, are said to cause skin cancer.
The ozone layer ( ozone is a form of oxygen ) lies at
about 50 kilometres above the earth's surface and works as a natural shield to
protect us from harmful sun rays.
The detailed composition of the earth's atmosphere and
the discovery of the ozone layer took place many centuries after the Quran was
revealed, nevertheless, there is mention in the Quran about this protective
layer that shields us against the sun's harmful rays:
" Until he reached the rising of the
sun, he found it rising on a people for whom We had provided no shield against
it (the sun)." 18:90
Five implications are drawn from this verse:
1) The word
"shield" implies that there is something harmful from the sun, because if
there was no harm to come from the sun, there would be no need for a shield.
2) In earlier interpretations of the
Quarn the word "shield" was taken to mean mountains
or hills, but mountains and hills do not shield us from the sun's rays ultra
violet rays unless we live all our lives inside one!
3) The phrasing of the verse indicates
that the people mentioned as having no shield are in fact the exception and that
for the rest of mankind there exists a shield.
4) The words "We
had provided no shield" indicate that the shield is a natural one ( of
God's making ) and not a man-made one. This automatically eliminates the
suggestion of houses and other man-made shelters.
5) The verse indicates the presence of
a people, and thus areas, that are not shielded. This is in line with the
current knowledge concerning the existence of holes in the ozone layer. It is
generally thought that these holes have always existed. The matter has suddenly
acquired an alarming nature because the size of these holes are greatly being
enlarged as a result of man's pollution of the planet.
The only phenomenon that is able to accommodate all these
five implications is the ozone layer.
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If we trace the early stages of the development of the
earth we find that the contracting nebula caused the earth to be very hot in the
initial stages. As it slowly began to cool the heavier elements like iron fell
to the centre whilst the lighter compounds like granite and oxides surfaced at
the top. The cooling continued and a thin crust formed. The layer immediately
beneath the crust eventually started to solidify giving rises and depressions
above it leading to the formation of mountains and valleys. When the surface
cooled further, to below 100 degrees centigrade, liquid water ( which before
then was still trapped inside the earth ) began to form and fill the depressions
that are now the oceans and seas.
The knowledge that all the water was once trapped
inside the earth and then was drawn out is mentioned in the Quran:
"He drew from within it ( the earth )
it's water and pasture." 79:31
An interesting geographical fact, relating to high and
low land on earth, is mentioned in the following verse
"The Romans were defeated in the lowest
of the lands." 30:2-3
It is now known that the area near the Dead Sea, which
was the scene of these battles, is the lowest spot on earth below sea level!
The Dead sea is also referred to in the Quran in a
different context and that is in connection with the story of Lot.
Lot, who was a nephew of Abraham, was a believer and
follower of Abraham. When Abraham left his home in Chaldoea and migrated to
Syria and Palestine, Lot accepted voluntary exile to follow him. The people of
Lot who were indulging in grave immorality ridiculed him saying:
"show us the wrath of your God, if you
tell the truth." 29:29
The Quran relates the story by indicating that God
undertook to destroy the people of that town except Lot and the believers who
followed him:
"We are going to bring down on the
people of this town a punishment from heaven because of their wicked sin, and We
have left thereof an evident sign for any people who care to understand."
29:34-35
The punishment was a rain of brimstone, which
completely overwhelmed the towns, with possibly an earthquake or volcanic
eruptions. Today, the whole tract on the east side of the Dead Sea where the
towns were situated, is covered with sulphurus salts and is deadly to animal and
plant life. The Dead Sea itself is called "Bahr Lout" in Arabic which means the
Sea of Lot. It is a scene of utter desolation that stands as a permanent symbol
of the destruction.
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The mountains that were formed, as the earth's crust
cooled, play a major role (as modern geological theories indicate). They
contribute to affixing the continents in place. These continents are virtually
floating on melted layers that lie beneath. In general, the thickness of the
earth's crust is about five kilometres. However , the thickness directly beneath
mountains extends up to thirty five kilometres. That is because beneath every
mountain lies a reversed shaped mountain root below the surface. These reversed
mountains do the job of pegs in affixing the land. This is very accurately
stated in the Quran:
"Have We not made the earth as a wide
expanse, and the mountains as pegs?" 78:6-7
Modern geological theory also states that the area of
dry land is not stable. That is due to two factors:
1- The shifting of the tops of
landscape due to running water, winds or ice. Running rivers, for example, shift
millions of tons of earth to the seas. Strong winds erode the mountain tops
while the thawing of ice shifts enormous material in its path.
2- The area of land also diminishes due
to regression, that is, the submerging of coastal land under sea level.
The diminishing size of dry land is mentioned in the Quran :
" ……… see they not that We gradually
reduce the land at its ends?" 21:44
The water that condensed at the early stages of the
development of the earth and formed the seas oceans mixed with the dirt to form
mud. Out of the molding mud was born the simplest living organisms in the shape
of bacteria and single cell organisms. From this common origin of both plants
and animals was developed two types of microscopic organisms. The first type
gave birth to all plants while the second type developed into animals. The first
of these primitive organisms is thought to have come to exist around 2.7 billion
years ago. All these organisms originated from water then gradually developed
into more complex living creatures that moved to land. This fact is also started
in the Quran:
"……….and We made, from water, every
living thing." 21:30
It is indeed interesting, and along the same lines, to
note that it was found that all liquid in our bodies ( blood, saliva, tears,
sweat….etc ) contain the same percentage of salt as is found in the oceans.
From the early organisms that moved to land developed
the first reptiles around 200 million years ago. The first birds flew around 130
million years ago and the first man, Homo Habilis, walked on earth one million
years ago. The first Homo Sapiens, who are thought of as our direct ancestors,
walked on earth a mere 15,000 years ago.
Today, when human tissue is analysed, it is found to
contain exactly the same eighteen most abundant elements in the earth's crust.
These are:
Oxygen, Silicon, Aluminium, Iron, Calcium, Sodium,
Potassium, Magnesium, Hydrogen, Chlorine, Iodine, Manganese, Phosphorous, Lead,
Copper, Silver, Carbon and Zinc.
The Quran very accurately instates that fact with the
following words:
"We have created man from a 'sulalah'
(quintessence or embodiment) of clay" 23:12
The fact that we are created from clay is indeed
mentioned in the Scripture preceding the Quran, however, it is the word
'sulalah' which literally means (an active
representative sample) that includes the biological fact that coincides with
modern knowledge.
For Part One: The Creation of The Universe,
click here
Other Links:
Quran & Science
Creation on man
from clay
info@submission.org
