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  • Increased

    18 45.00%
  • Decreased

    7 17.50%
  • Stayed the same

    5 12.50%
  • I dont know but i do care

    3 7.50%
  • I neither know nor care

    7 17.50%

Thread: the earth - heavier or lighter

  1. #1
    Hamster without a wheel iain's Avatar
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    the earth - heavier or lighter

    Since the point at which the earth came into existance (note: carefully worded to avoid big bang Vs creation )

    has it increased in mass
    decreased in mass
    stayed the same
    Monday - what a way to spend a seventh of your life

  2. #2
    Crazy Fool Perspective's Avatar
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    Increased. If you want to know why, explanations start a $5 a piece

  3. #3
    The Earth is not flat. Clyde's Avatar
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    We will have lost some atmosphere but have been hit by quite a few meteors/comets, intuitively you would expect the meteors to outweigh the loss of atmosphere by quite a lot, so i'd guess an increase.
    Entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem

  4. #4
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    On the plus-side we have metroids, comets, dust, solar wind and all kinds of other stuff raining down on us. On the minus-side we have... yeah, right, man-made satellites which left the earth. Whooooho. :-)

    edit: no, honestly I believe she's getting lighter each day.
    main() { int O[!0<<~-!0]; (!0<<!0)[O]+= ~0 +~(!0|!0<<!0); printf("a function calling "); }

  5. #5
    Bob Dole for '08 B0bDole's Avatar
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    Planets start as planetismals then accrete into larger and larger planets, Terrestrial planets accrete rock/metal from surrending planetary nebula, while Jovian planets accrete frozen H compounds beyond the frost line (between Mars and Jupiter). Everything in the solar system is getting larger, even the Sun. Since the Sun is a Main Sequence star, and fuses Hydrogen into Helium, the outer surfarce will continue to expand, and the core will shrink, until it turns into a White Dwarf (cold solid rock of Carbon).

    Does thate explain it?
    Hmm

  6. #6
    The Earth is not flat. Clyde's Avatar
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    Presumeably the sun is losing mass though, even if it is expanding.
    Entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem

  7. #7
    Mayor of Awesometown Govtcheez's Avatar
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    It's around the holidays, so I'm going to say it's a little heavier. Gaia's never been one to turn down planetoid drumsticks or the stuffing nebula.

  8. #8
    Registered User hk_mp5kpdw's Avatar
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    Wasn't personally interested in the earth mass loss/gain issue but I did find a couple websites dealing with the sun. They all said the sun is lossing mass. Here is one of them.
    "Owners of dogs will have noticed that, if you provide them with food and water and shelter and affection, they will think you are god. Whereas owners of cats are compelled to realize that, if you provide them with food and water and shelter and affection, they draw the conclusion that they are gods."
    -Christopher Hitchens

  9. #9
    S Sang-drax's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by iain
    has it increased in mass
    decreased in mass
    stayed the same
    It has increased in mass.
    Here's recent movie that looks in to some of the aspects of the problem.
    Last edited by Sang-drax : Tomorrow at 02:21 AM. Reason: Time travelling

  10. #10
    Hamster without a wheel iain's Avatar
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    All the material we have burned would decrease the mass
    All the births would increase the mass
    Monday - what a way to spend a seventh of your life

  11. #11
    The Earth is not flat. Clyde's Avatar
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    All the material we have burned would decrease the mass
    All the births would increase the mass
    I'm afraid both those statements are basically wrong.

    Burning stuff doesn't decrease mass, it just moves it around a bit.

    The earth will lose mass by radiating it, but on average we will probably be gaining pretty much the same amount through absorption as we're losing through emmision.

    Edit: Though on reflection (hah) we've probably emitted more than absorbed since the Earth has cooled down.
    Last edited by Clyde; 12-08-2004 at 11:22 AM.
    Entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem

  12. #12
    5|-|1+|-|34|) ober's Avatar
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    Ok, so either the board hates me or someone didn't like my reply and deleted it.

  13. #13
    Registered User
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    Quote Originally Posted by ober
    Ok, so either the board hates me or someone didn't like my reply and deleted it.
    A little from column a, a little from column b.


  14. #14
    5|-|1+|-|34|) ober's Avatar
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    I see. :: shrugs :: Oh well.

  15. #15
    Bob Dole for '08 B0bDole's Avatar
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    >Presumeably the sun is losing mass though, even if it is expanding.

    I don't have an A in AST 2002, I did catch a little info though.
    Hmm

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