Expert: Jayendra Upadhye - 12/21/2007

Question
QUESTION: Hello,

      I am in the 8th grade. I was wondering what your thoughts were
on how the solar system was formed, like how ours was supposedly formed
from the solar nebulae. Also I was wondering, do you agree with me when
i saw that there is a possibility that here is another planet like
earth out there? I mean we formed out of ,for lack of a better word,
randomness. So who is to say that there is not another planet with these
conditions? I mean there might not be humans,etc. But maybe there are
plants and such. What do you think? Sorry from carrying on :)

ANSWER: Hi!
Rachael, I seriously doubt you are an 8th grader!!
If you truly are an 8th grader and not someone trying to pull a leg, we are birds of the same feather.

When i was your age, i had many such thoughts (earth shaking ones i thought of them at that time..:), but "good & rational" thoughts not many my age were having).

I congratulate you on this. It is a vert original question if its from a genuine 8th grader.

I predict you will go far (a horse not for the ordinary races, but a horse for the steeple chase you are!...a long distance runner).

Now coming to your questions...
1 - Regarding other "like" planets, Agreed! In fact there is so much randomness and chaos, that i wouldnt be surprised if there were planets that are exact copies of the earth in all respects, complete with humans and the same genetic sequence, but with may be a different histories!!
   Imagine a trillion galaxies each with 100 billion stars most with planets. Why! The probability is there may be earth replicas in our neighbourhood itself!! (A radius of say 500 lightyears? Radio started on earth say 100 years ago, then those transmissions havent gone beyond a distance of 100 lightyears and may be too faint for unintentional alien listeners.

2 - How the solar system was formed...
Apart from what established theories are, I do believe our planetary system was "seeded" by a supernova explosion, in a large cloud full of other stars ..a stellar nursery, as we now see in M16. EAGLE nebula.
   The reason is that earth is rich in many trans-iron elements that are synthesized only in the shock wave of the supernova explosion. Also the sun is only burning hydrogen yet, and all elements above hydrogen, in the periodic table, that we find on earth came from THAT supernova( 1 or more).
  My PET theory says that as the roughly spherical cloud of dust and gas started to shrink under gravity, shells of gas actually "rebounded" as they heated up and re-expanded, leaving the "dust" to congregate inwards faster. The cloud soon resembled an onion, with shells of gas alternately cooling and shrinking, then rebounding when heated up. That's why the external planets are gas giants, and the inner planets all dust (si02 / iron / Nickel ETC).
   A small "inner sphere" managed to completely collapse and form the sun, the heat of which drove away the remnant "amniotic gas" to be absorbed into the already formed giants.

Now it is your turn i am sure to pardon me for carrying on!

regards,
Continue thinking for yourself, and to marvel and wonder..it is a gift.
But do work hard too..
Jayen

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks for responding, yes i am a 8th Grader. And people do tend to tell me that I think in advanced ways. Another question I have for you evolves sunspots. How do you think they form, and do you think the are bad? I personally think it may hay something to do with the sun cooling off. And also from before when you said"Also the sun is only burning hydrogen" I thought, maybe this is the effect of the sun switching fuels, or something like it. What do you think? Oh I i don't mind if you carry on, lol

Answer
Hi Racgael,
So my guess was right.
You are "thinking adult" before your time!

Rachael you may turn out to be a "self made" person.
My predictions in this area are rarely wrong...

But having said that i must dwell on the pitfalls of being "self made"! (I would not be doing my duty if i failed to alert you to these, for accolades do come to people like you, but right advice may not always be forthcoming.

The pifalls are:-
1 - Arrogance. (most self made guys ..i am one..are quite arrogant. I had to painfully acknowledge it in later life at some expense to myself) This is mainly driven by ones achievments, but the dividing line between "self assuarance and arrogance is very thin. Beware.
2 - Sheer cussedness..One starts believing in oneself toomuch, and looses the advantage of "3rd party dispassionate impersonal ananlysis on many crirtical issues...beware!
3 - Isolation. Peope begin fearing you. You may become socially isolated. Beware, make friends and enjoy "things they like and do, even if you might "look down" on their tastes. This is a very real danger, and can be very painful as you grow older. [That is the price tag with which your gift comes].

Now to your questions.
1 - Sun spots. Read my answer in light of above warnings..Rachael, what one "thinks" and what "is" are most often quite different things. Why dont you read up some science literature and find out what scientists have concluded using latest technological tools? In this age, it is very rare for one to "sit under a tree and find gravity because an apple fell on their heads"! The days when great discoveries were made by sheer intuition have gone. That applies to sunspots too! Find out how magnetic fields are associated with spots, and WHY they are cooler.
Your and mine pet theories here are like so many leaves in the wind of truth.

Sun spots are neither good nor bad.

Now here is the pet theory part..i let loose only where my "dream world" wont be shattered by "lousy hard" facts!...I suggest you do so too. have pet theories only in uncharted territory, else stick to good science!
Most gas giants have "spots" jupiter has one, neptune has one too. It may be a general rule for large bodies of gas..(simple mathematical induction...lovely isnt it?)..if the gas giants have spots then the sun should also have them. Period. Rather like the BODE series that predicted a planet where the asteroid belt is to be seen. It gave no reasons, just simple statistical maths.
There is ofcourse a theory that says the spots are the result of perturbations of solar gas by jupiter, as the spots follow an 11 years cycle associated with jupe!

2 - Sun cooling off...Again co-operate dont "think", first see the evidence! That is what science is all about.
There is something known as the solar constant. it is 1.4 kilowatts of radiant energy per square meter in the area in earth's orbit. As we travel away from the sun, this incident energy density falls off by the inverse square law. But IT IS CONSTANT at all points. And will remain so for millions of years. The sun has to burn hydrogen at this rate for another 5 billion years!! So dont worry the sun is NOT cooling off.

3 - Sun switching fuels..."You are still in the comics age"..The sun will start burning helium only 5 billion years from now, and that will let off so much heat that its surface will spread outwards and engulf mercury then venus then earth then mars! It will become a red giant!

Use my warnings in life and you will fare well with your gift! [All gifts come with their "cigarette" warnings!! Nothing comes for free, and Not all gifted people make their gifts a success. Heed these words.]

regards
Jayen