[stockpirate]

I question calling oil a fossil fuel, I read recently that they have discovered a planet that has oceans made up of hydrocarbons, isn't that oil?

[tbpiper]

I question calling oil a fossil fuel

I agree. the earth makes the stuff.

Some years ago, I searched info on whale oil. There was a record sized baleen whale that rendered x amount of barrels of whale oil. A whale oil barrel is about 35 gallons. Today's oil barrel is about 43 us gallons.

Assuming the baleen whale is equivalent to a dinosaur and could die and self render oil, I estimated that somewhere around 250,000 baleen whale sized dinosaurs would have to die every day to render up enough oil for the world's needs today.

Feel free to check my less than rigorous calculations.

[buffyt]

And methane on other planets. I never believed oil was a fossil fuel. I think it’s much more likely that animals went into the tar pics like La Brea, thinking it’s water. Got stuck, died. So when u find oil, asphalt, u find skeletons in it, fossils. I think oil was here from day one like gold etc.

[thackney]

Crude oil is far more complex than the simple methane, ethane found on planets/moons without sufficient oxygen.

[AFreeBird]

Actually, I think it was one of Saturns moons. IIRC Liquid methane. Oceans of it. It rains methane. And methane is a hydrocarbon, but not exactly oil. I think oil has a longer, more complex molecular chain.