Monthly Archives: September 2015

All life on Earth survives because of the sun. Plants use a process called photosynthesis to transfer energy from the Sun’s rays into the sugars that build their stems and leaves. Animals either eat the plants directly, or eat other animals that have eaten plants. Countless other organisms, like bacteria, algae, and fungi, rely on similar processes to survive. In fact, Earth’s position in our solar system, and its distance from the Sun, is what makes its environment so suitable to life. It’s neither too warm nor too cold; neither too bright nor too dim. Our Sun is a star, and is one of many stars in the universe. What’s even more amazing is that in recent decades, astronomers have used modern technology to detect all sorts of planets around other stars! These scientists, whose job it is to search for life in the universe, have concluded that life may…

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On planet Earth, most organisms draw their life-fuel from the Sun. Our plant life uses photosynthesis to convert the Sun’s rays into food, and our animal life forms consume these plants either directly or indirectly. The fact that the Sun is absolutely essential to life on Earth has led many scientists to conclude that a central star similar to our Sun and a planetary location similar to our Earth is necessary for life on any planet. However, examples of life forms on Earth living in extreme environments suggest that this may not be the case. There are areas on Earth that do not receive any sunlight, requiring life to adapt and develop alternative sources of energy. In deep ocean environments where sunlight cannot penetrate, organisms subsist on the energy from deep sea vents attached to the ocean floor. The process of energy conversion they use is called chemosynthesis instead of…

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