Earth is the only planet in the solar system where life thrives. There are various factors that play a crucial role in determining the habitability of planet earth, and it includes the planet's ideal positioning in the star system, along with several other elements which include the interior of Earth which produces vast magnetic fields.
It should be noted that the magnetic fields in the interior of the earth have a crucial role in maintaining the planet's atmosphere.
Earth's interior cooling quickly
However, a new study suggests that the earth's interior is cooling much faster than previously thought. As the planet's interior is cooling quickly, it may disrupt the magnetic fields which may ultimately turn the earth into a barren land like the moon.
Earth had its birth approximately 4.5 billion years ago, and since then, the planet has had an unimaginably heated core that drives several activities allowing life to thrive.
Moreover, the earth's interior is responsible for tectonic activities and volcanism, and these phenomena are necessary for creating an undisrupted carbon cycle and stable global temperatures. The magnetic field is also responsible for keeping harmful solar radiation away from the earth's surface.
New finding suggests possible transformation of earth to a barren land
The new study led by Motohiko Murakami of ETH Zurich in Switzerland found that the heat from Earth's core is rapidly seeping to the mantle, the layer outside the core.
If this phenomenon continues, the earth would be stripped of its atmosphere, ultimately resulting in higher exposure to solar radiation and elevated global temperatures. It should be noted that Mars had lost its atmosphere due to its weakened magnetic field.
"Our results could give us a new perspective on the evolution of Earth's dynamics. They suggest that Earth, like the other rocky planets Mercury and Mars, is cooling and becoming inactive much faster than expected," said Murakami, Science Alert reports.
