Page 125 - The Creation Of The Universe

Harun Yahya (Adnan Oktar) 123

The Right Star, the Right Planet, and the Right
Distance
In "The Blue Planet" we compared our world with the other planets of
the solar system and found that the range of temperatures necessary for life
exists only on Earth. The biggest reason for this is that the Earth is just the
right distance from the Sun: the outer planets like Mars, Jupiter, or Pluto are
too cold while the inner planets Venus and Mercury are too hot.
Those who refuse to admit that the distance between Earth and Sun is
specially created, suggest something like the following: "The universe is full
of stars, some of them much bigger than the Sun and some of them much
smaller. These could very well have planetary systems of their own. If a star
is bigger than the Sun, then the ideal planet for life would be located at a
much greater distance than the Earth is from the Sun. For example, a plan-
et in an orbit around a red giant at the distance of Pluto could have a tem-
perate climate like our world has. Such a planet would be just as fit for life
as our Earth is."
The claim is invalid in one very important respect for it ignores the fact
that stars of different masses radiate different types of energy.
The factors that determine the wavelengths of the energy that a star ra-
diates are its mass and its surface temperature (the latter of which is directly
related to mass). For example, the Sun radiates near ultraviolet, visible, and
near infrared light because its surface temperature is around 6,000°C. If the
Sun's mass were a bit bigger, its surface temperature would be higher; but
in that case, the energy levels of the Sun's radiation would also be higher
and the Sun would be radiating much more destructive ultraviolet rays than
it does.
This tells us that any star that is to radiate light that will support life ab-
solutely must have a mass close to that of our Sun. But if there are to be
life-supporting planets orbiting around such stars, those planets must be lo-
cated at distances not substantially different from that between the Earth
and the Sun.
In other words, no planet revolving around a red giant, a blue giant, or