Astronomy Picture of the Day -- Four Billion BCE: Battered Earth

NASA ^ | August 05, 2014 | (see photo credit)

[SunkenCiv]

Explanation: No place on Earth was safe. Four billion years ago, during the Hadean eon, our Solar System was a dangerous shooting gallery of large and dangerous rocks and ice chunks. Recent examination of lunar and Earth bombardment data indicate that the entire surface of the Earth underwent piecemeal upheavals, hiding our globe's ancient geologic history, and creating a battered world with no remaining familiar land masses. The rain of devastation made it difficult for any life to survive, although bacteria that could endure high temperatures had the best chance. Oceans thought to have formed during this epoch would boil away after particularly heavy impacts, only to reform again. The above artist's illustration depicts how Earth might have looked during this epoch, with circular impact features dotting the daylight side, and hot lava flows visible in the night. One billion years later, in a calmer Solar System, Earth's first supercontinent formed.

[SunkenCiv]

[Illustration Credit: Simone Marchi (SwRI), SSERVI, NASA]

[SunkenCiv]

The Big One

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[TigersEye]

There once was a bacterium named Algore who wanted to tax all the other bacteria to stop Global Pummeling.

[SunkenCiv]

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[cripplecreek]

Cool pic but I would expect a planet like that to have an atmosphere heavy with steam from the active volcanism and impact heat.

Just picky I guess.

[freedumb2003]

>>No place on Earth was safe. Four billion years ago, during the Hadean eon, our Solar System was a dangerous shooting gallery of large and dangerous rocks and ice chunks. <<

Then, we elected osama obozo and everyone was safe.

[Vehmgericht]

For people not familiar with the abbreviation “BCE,” it is based on the birth of the baby Jesus, our Lord and Savior. It is used by people who fear that the mention of the baby Jesus might offend people who are extremely sensitive about the mention of the baby Jesus. Whenever it is used people should be reminded that it is in fact based on the birth of the baby Jesus. People who are offended by the mention of the baby Jesus will become more accustomed to hearing the name baby Jesus and will become more accustomed to it.

[fieldmarshaldj]

I call BCE, Before Christian Era. :-)

[mikrofon]

Composite w/ prior APOD rip-offs ;)

[Ken H]

There once was a bacterium named Algore who wanted to tax all the other bacteria to stop Global Pummeling.

Thought that was going to be a limerick.

[Gay State Conservative]

That’s “Before Christ” (BC),oh government friend of our atheist President!

[TigersEye]

No limerick, sorry! Or ‘you’re welcome’ depending on how you look at it. lol

[TigersEye]

I call BCE, Before Christian Era. :-)

I thought that's what it meant.

[Ken H]

There once was a bacterium named Algore,
Whose views on the climate were hardcore.
Although made out of wood,
They knew was good.
Just not what was he good for.

[Ken H]

There once was a bacterium named Algore,
Whose views on the climate were hardcore.
Although made out of wood,
They knew was good.
Just not what he was good for.

(argghh. First rule of comedy - get it right the first time)

[P.O.E.]

How about BCEU - Before Christ Emancipated Us?

[TigersEye]

LOL Good job!

[ThomasMore]

BCE - Before Common Era
CE - Common Era

It was the secularists and the religious pluralists that started using this designation so that others would not be offended. (barf)

BC - Before Christ
AD - “Anno Domini” Year of the Lord

[tacticalogic]

It was the secularists and the religious pluralists that started using this designation so that others would not be offended. (barf)

You'd rather have some bureaucrats at the Bureau of Standards taking sides choosing the winner in theological disagreements over exactly when Christ was born?

[null and void]

How about BCEU - Before Christ Emancipated Us?

That would date to the resurrection.

33 years off the current calendar, and pinned to an event EXACTLY dated...

I originally posted this about a decade ago:

Which brings me to one of my hobby horses:

We already agree that our calendar is wrong, off by anywhere from 2 to 16 years, depending on who's doing the reckoning, and further in error because of the absence of a year zero.

The more fundamental point is that God did not intend us to mark His years by the birth of Jesus.

If He had intended this we would have a Biblical fixing of the date.

Further, the day of Jesus' birth is unremarkable as all men are born.

However, very few return from the dead, that event is remarkable, and it is the defining moment of Christianity, the very moment of proof that his sacrifice was not in vain. And the Bible gives a precise reference for when this happened!

Clearly this was the date the calendar was supposed to start!

For extra points, this makes our calendar off by anywhere from 17 to 30 years. That makes this something like Holy Year 1988 to Holy Year 1975, giving us anywhere from 12 to 25 years to get our affairs in order before the real end of the millennium...