Burn or Freeze

As you know, the surface temperature on the Earth can get very hot or very cold.

The highest officially registered temperature on the surface of our planet is 56.7 degrees Celsius, or 134 degrees Fahrenheit.

That incredible temperature was recorded in California’s Death Valley in 1913.

But, of course, it can also get extremely cold.

The coldest temperature that has ever been recorded on the surface of the Earth was in Antarctica, an unbelievable minus 89 degrees Celsius, or minus 129 Fahrenheit.

Absolute zero is the lowest temperature possible throughout the entire universe, which is minus 273.15 degrees Celsius or minus 460 degrees Fahrenheit.

Higher temperatures can be extreme and mind-boggling; at the time of a supernova (an exploding star), temperatures can reach billions of degrees Celsius.

Here are three more of my short-form articles of 150 words or less.

How long has life on Earth existed?

Primitive life forms have been living on our world for a very long time.

The Earth is over 4.5 billion years old and was formed from leftover material not long after the formation of the Sun.

The question.

Roughly how long ago were primitive life forms living on our planet?

(900 million years, 2.1 billion years, or 3.7 billion years)

Yes, our ancestors go back a very long time.

Consider yourself very special and unique; the odds against you being here are astronomical and extremely close to zero.

Part of those odds is that you are the latest result of an unbroken chain of reproduction that started more than 3.7 billion years ago.

The Great Basin Bristlecone Pine Tree may be the oldest living organism.

Pinus longaeva is a species of bristlecone pine tree found in the high mountains of California, Utah, and Nevada.

Methuselah, as it is sometimes called, is thought to be the oldest living organism on our planet. Bristlecone pines can reach staggering ages.

Question — What age is the oldest living Great Basin Bristlecone pine tree?

(1,483 / 2,793 or 4,853 years old)

The average lifespan of a human at just over 70 years seems very short when compared to some other life forms.

Just think of the poor Mayfly, they have the shortest lifespan of any known animal, just one day.

Answer: 4,853 years old and counting.

How much air do we breathe?

To live we need to breathe.

Question: Roughly, how much air does an average adult human inhale in a day?

(4,000, 8,000, or 11,000 litres?)

We breathe in air, which contains around 20% oxygen. Our respiratory system consumes about a quarter of that oxygen with every breath. The cells of our body use that oxygen to keep us alive.

The earth’s atmosphere also contains 78% nitrogen and small amounts of carbon dioxide, neon, and hydrogen.

The answer to the question is 11,000 litres. That works out at over 7 litres of air per minute. But of course, if you were exercising, your intake of air would be much higher.

The evolutionary path for life has been extremely long, but we have finally arrived.

Our highly developed brain has given us intelligence and curiosity; now we can try and make sense of our existence.