Page 128 - The Creation Of The Universe

126 THE CREATION OF THE UNIVERSE

range of electromagnetic radiation from radio to gamma rays is the ex-
ceedingly narrow band including the visible and near infrared.
Virtually no gamma, X, ultraviolet, far infrared, and microwave radi-
ation reaches the surface of the Earth. 74
It is impossible to ignore the artfulness of this structure. The Sun sends
only 1/10 25 of the whole range of electromagnetic radiation that could be
sent, that happens to be the range that is good only for us, and that is the
radiation that the atmosphere lets through! At this point it's also worth
pointing out that nearly all of the near ultraviolet that the Sun radiates gets
trapped by the atmosphere's ozone layer.
Another point that makes this even more interesting is that, like air, wa-
ter also has an extremely particular sort of transparency: the only radiation
capable of spreading through water is the range of visible light. Even near
infrared radiation, which penetrates the atmosphere (and thus provides
heat) penetrates only a few millimeters into water. Because of this, only a
few millimeters of the surface of the world's oceans are heated by radiation
from the Sun. That heat is conveyed in stages to lower levels and as a re-
sult of this, below a particular depth, the temperature of the seawater is
quite similar all over the world. This of course creates an environment quite
suitable for life.
Another interesting point concerning water is that the different colors of
visible light are able to travel different distances in it. Below eighteen me-
ters, for example, red light cannot penetrate while yellow can reach depths
of up to a hundred meters. Blue and green on the other hand descend to
240 meters. This is an extremely important feature because the light that is
particularly crucial for photosynthesis is the blue and green portion of the
spectrum. Since water allows these colors to penetrate more deeply than
the others, photosynthesizing plants can live up to 240 meters beneath the
surface.
These are all facts of the utmost importance. No matter what physical
law related to light we examine, we discover that everything has been ex-
actly arranged so that life can exist. Commenting on this situation,
Encyclopedia Britannica admits how extraordinary it all is: