Earth is experiencing the sixth mass extinction of life! On January 10, 2022, a biologist at the University of Hawaii in the United States claimed in a research paper in Biological Reviews that the Earth is experiencing a sixth mass extinction and cited a large amount of evidence. In the biologist's description, the diversity of life on Earth is under serious threat, and the number of different species is also declining off a cliff.
Is all this true? In what way will life on Earth usher in its own doom?
The end of the world in film and television dramas
When it comes to the end of the world, we haven't seen it with our own eyes, but we are all familiar with it. In domestic and foreign film and television dramas, we can often see such scenes: the collapsing earth swallows up the order under the setting sun; the crumbling mountain peaks crush all the traces of civilization; the lonely earth is frozen, and the silent pale spreads to the end of the world; the continental fragments produced after the earth collapse spiral into the deep black hole... These are the apocalyptic scenes in the artist's work, and they are people's speculations about the end of the world. What is frightening is that the end of the world is not people's unwarranted fear of the unknown, from the day the planet under our feet was born, in the long years, life on Earth has ushered in the "end" more than once.
Five mass extinctions in history
Born 4.6 billion years ago, Earth is a planet of vibrant life, from the ocean to land and sky, simple life has evolved over billions of years to gradually form the species-rich earth biosphere today. Since the emergence of life on Earth 3.5 billion years ago, life on Earth has ushered in five planetary extinction events:
The first mass extinction was around 440 million years ago at the end of the Ordovician period, when the sudden ice age and subsequent global warming caused more than eighty percent of life to disappear from the Earth stage;
The second mass extinction occurred at the end of the Devonian Period, the global carbon dioxide concentration declined, the land became a paradise for plants, and about 70% of the species became extinct;
The third mass extinction occurred at the end of the Permian period, about 250 million years ago, when asteroid impacts and eruptions of large volcanoes caused large amounts of dust to spread across the globe, and the oceans were no longer hotbeds of life, with more than ninety-five percent of species becoming extinct during this period;
The fourth mass extinction occurred at the end of the Triassic period, about 200 million years ago, when an asteroid struck The Earth, and fortunately, three-quarters of the species survived after the extinction event, including the dinosaur population that would rule the earth for a long time to come;
The fifth mass extinction is the most recent and the most well-known. About 150 million years ago, another planetary impact and volcanic eruption event caused more than seventy-five percent of the world's species to go extinct. After that, humanity came to the center of the stage of earth's history until today.
Seven major events that lead to the extinction of life
Judging from the long history of the earth, every once in a while, life on the earth will usher in an "apocalyptic" test. We can't help but wonder what the next extinction event of life will take. After research and research, scientists have given the answer, a total of seven major events may lead to the widespread extinction of species.
Asteroids hit Earth
Asteroid impacts have occurred many times in history, each of which has brought death and destruction. At the moment of impact, ground-based organisms will die in large areas under the impact shock wave. More people will then die from natural disasters such as earthquakes, tsunamis and storms caused by meteor impacts. The Earth after the meteor impact will no longer be suitable for living organisms, and those who survived the initial impact will have a hard time finding food, because the dust generated by the impact will cover the globe and change the climate, and cause global cooling.
Global tsunami
Tsunamis are one of nature's most feared forces. Eighty percent of the tsunamis on Earth are caused by undersea earthquakes, and when the earthquake occurs, the faults on the seabed are misaligned, and the seawater will be pushed up in an instant, forming huge waves that sweep everything. Unlike the waves of Holiday Beach, tsunamis are of a lethal nature, and under the might of nature, everything can only be left to the flow of water to carry away its own broken wreckage.
Solar flares are abnormally active
Solar flares that are abnormally active can radiate charged particles outward from their corona, killing all life on Earth in an instant. In fact, flare activity is carried out all the time, but in general, the sun does not directly emit charged particles to the earth. However, even if only a small fraction of the particles can reach Earth, it will bring us auroras or solar storms.
The Earth's magnetic poles are reversed
The Earth is like a giant magnet, and the magnetic field helps us resist some of the particles that the sun throws at us. However, scientists have found that every once in a while, the position of the earth's north and south magnetic poles flips. The frequency of this reversal and the length of time it will take for the magnetic field to stabilize after the reversal is uncertain, and scientists are not sure what happens when the north and south poles are flipped. But one thing is for sure, if the Earth's magnetic field weakens when it reverses, the Earth will be exposed to solar storms, and all we need to consider at that time is to choose a comfortable position for our last sleep.
Large volcanic eruptions
Mass extinctions in the Permian, Triassic, and Cretaceous periods were all associated with volcanic eruptions. At the moment of volcanic eruption, a large amount of hot ash will quickly sweep across the world, and a large amount of sulfide and carbon dioxide will suffocate and kill humans and animals fleeing under high temperatures. In addition to the high temperature of volcanic ash, these dangerous substances can also inhibit photosynthesis to destroy the ecology of plants. After a volcanic eruption, acid rain falls across the globe, and the volcanic ash that covers the globe will further lead to a major change in global temperatures. The duration of the impact of large volcanic eruptions is often calculated in centenary millennia.
nuclear warfare
Nuclear weapons are synonymous with extreme destructive power, but compared to the threat after the explosion, the shock waves and radiation generated by the explosion of nuclear weapons will only kill organisms in a small area. If a global nuclear war breaks out, after all the nuclear bombs explode, tens of millions of tons of nuclear dust will pour into the atmosphere, and even higher can enter the stratosphere of tens of kilometers or more. This nuclear dust will hold up a giant umbrella above our heads to absorb the heat of the sun, and as the temperature of the atmosphere continues to rise, the surface temperature will continue to decrease, and the next winter will be incomparably long.
The Earth's temperature changes
There are many causes of mass extinction events, but most of these events will eventually be accompanied by changes in global temperatures. Mass extinction events in the Ordovician, Permian, and Triassic periods were responsible for global cooling. When temperatures drop, low temperatures kill some organisms, followed by water turning to ice across the globe, and falling sea levels can have a greater impact on life on Earth. When temperatures rise globally, some scientists believe that Venus, which is also a planet in the solar system, is the future shadow of Earth.
Earth, the only home
We don't have to be too nervous to learn about the above seven major events that can wipe out life on Earth, including humans, because these major events that may lead to the extinction of life are currently only in the scientists' conjecture model. What we need to be wary of are some of the changes in the natural environment that are happening around us, including urban pollution, wastewater dumping into the ocean, and the destruction of biological habitats... These things are really happening right before our eyes.
Whether or not the sixth mass extinction is taking place, the decline of species and the destruction of biodiversity are alarm bells for us. Humanity has only one earth, and all we can do is accumulate strength to face the possible "end" to ensure that the next extinction event does not occur in the hands of mankind.
Resources:
January 1980). "Relationship between biological extinctions and geomagnetic reversals". Geology. 8(12): 578.
Raup, David M. (28 March 1985). "Magnetic reversals and mass extinctions". Nature. 314 (6009): 341–343.
Helmenstine, Anne Marie, Ph.D. "7 Extinction Level Events That Could End Life as We Know It." ThoughtCo, Sep. 1, 2021,
Scientists: Sixth global mass extinction event happening now . St George News
Author: Fog on the Mountain Editor: Plum