City Libraries, City of Gold Coast

Earth, the power of the planet, written & presented by Iain Stewart; produced by Jonathan Renouf

eng

Earth

written & presented by Iain Stewart; produced by Jonathan Renouf

the power of the planet

Reveals the role natural forces have played in the creation of the planet Earth : 1. Volcano : Although they are destructive, volcanoes were crucial to the development of life on our planet. Iain's journey takes him to Ethiopia to discover lava lakes, to Iceland to scuba dive between continents, and to New Zealand to sample hot springs ----- 2. Atmosphere : traces the history of the atmosphere, from the ozone layer's creation to its current destruction ----- 3. Ice : looks at how ice has carved out landscapes, unleashed catastrophes and shaped human evolution. Now it could cause the destruction of our civilisation. Iain visits the Jacobshavn glacier in Greenland which has retreated 10km in the last few years because of global warming ------ 4. Oceans : Iain travels to surfers' paradise Hawaii to learn more about oceans, explaining the difference between waves, tides and currents. In the Amazon, he rides the world's longest tidal bore. In the beginning, there were no oceans: they are thought to have gradually formed from volcano steam and melted comet ice. Change continues today: a new sea is forming in Ethiopia, which will separate East Africa from the mainland, and the Mediterranean is drying up ------ 5. Rare Earth : Our planet is unique within the solar system. Four-and-a-half billion years ago it had a 'twin' named Theia which was absorbed into the Earth, increasing its gravity and allowing it to form an atmosphere. Iain travels to Meteor Crater in Arizona to explore the atmosphere's role in protecting us from bombardment by meteorites. Life on earth only prospers because it is provided with right amount of heat from the sun

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