Bill O’Reilly said some pretty bizarre things the other day – that the fact that the Earth is the only planet in the universe with a moon and Mars doesn’t have a moon is the proof that God exists and the Earth is a unique creation. Mars has two moons. Jupiter has 63 moons
We’re only now at the point that we can detect that other solar systems have planets by the tiny effect on the light coming from their suns as the planets orbit and block part of the light on a regular interval. We can’t yet see the planets themselves, and certainly wouldn’t see a small moon orbiting a planet in aother solar system. Given that 7 out of the 9 planets in our solar system (if you still count Pluto) have moons, it’s pretty silly to think that having a moon makes the Earth unique in the Universe.
What saddens me more is that NewsBusters has felt a need to come to O’Reilly’s defense.
The connection to Roy Masters is his new weekend program “Finding God Through Physics” is based on the same premise – that tidal forces and gravitational attraction prove that God exists and everything isn’t just a random accident. *sigh*
Yes, Roy is a little more eccentric in his older age, but I wouldn’t throw out all the bathwater. Over the years he has said many insightful things, also some very hurtful things. Over all, Roy’s been a big plus to radio. In better years I listened to him quite often. Leave your mind a little open – who woulda thunk of an idea that gravity may come from a depression of space-fabric. I too think the Universe screams out design.
Which has nothing to do with the religions of Abraham.
Giving O’Reilly the benefit of the doubt, he may have been repeating the idea that the Moon is “too big” to have been captured by the gravitation field of the Earth, therefore the Moon and Earth must have been created at the same time.
We know that isn’t true based on the rocks we brought back from the moon, analysis of meteors and the rovers on Mars. The theory that host accurately explains the moon is that the Earth was hit by a planet about the size of Mars. The earth was violently torn apart and the pieces reaggregated as the Earth and the moon, essentially made from the same stuff.
It’s also very narrow thinking that the Earth has always had one and only one Moon.
For a little thought exercise, in addition to the Biblical answer, how did the Allegheny Mountains come to be there. They aren’t old volcanos like other mountain ranges. They are made from sedementary rocks thousands of feet above sea level.
*** tosses out hook and opens a soda ***
Well shoot! Even I have two moons.
Okay, what does plate tectonics have to do with the moon? The Allegheny mountains were created by massive continent-sized plates floating on molten magma and pushed through stresses acting on two or more of these plates. The moon, however, is made of cheese and was put there by Kraft as an publicity stunt.