The Origin of Earth’s Oceans: Where Did the Water Come From?

By: Malcolm Walter

FROM Earth has more oceans than land. Of course, there is also a lot of water locked up as ice at the North and South Poles.

Also read: Why Are the World’s Oceans Changing Color?

Where all that water comes from is a very good question. Scientists have long wondered about this. We still don’t know for sure, but it’s likely that the water came from two places.

Let’s start with how Earth and other planets were formed.

In the beginning, in the universe there were huge clouds of dust and rocks. Gravity caused the cloud to shrink and slowly formed the Sun and planets.

The dust and rock that forms contains minerals that contain water. When it formed, the Earth became very hot.

The earth melted and many volcanoes appeared. The water on the rocks forms steam and escapes from the volcano as giant clouds which cool and become rain. That’s where most of the water comes from.

Also read: Interesting Facts about the Deepest Places in Earth’s Oceans

Additionally, the original cloud of dust and rock included many rocks made of ice, like giant snowballs. There are still a lot of them around the Sun. We call them comets.

There were billions of comets as planets formed and many fell to Earth and melted. That’s where the rest of the water comes from.

The question is, how did water form in the universe?

That’s a big question for another time, but the short answer is: water is made of hydrogen and oxygen atoms. (Atoms are the small building blocks of the universe – even you and I are made of atoms).

Hydrogen atoms in water were formed in the Big Bang that started the universe. Oxygen atoms formed after that in stars. They gathered and water formed.

So, our water is very old and precious. Let’s keep it sustainable.

Malcolm Walter
Professor of Astrobiology, UNSW Sydney

This article was published on Kompas.com in collaboration with The Conversation Indonesia. The text above is taken from the original article entitled “Where did the ocean come from and how was it formed?“. The contents are beyond the responsibility of Kompas.com.

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2023-09-06 01:00:00
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