The Universe and Solar System: Religious Views

Religious Accounts of Creation

• Hinduism: Belief in Brahman, a supreme God. Creation involves Lord Vishnu from whose navel a lotus flower emerges with Brahma, who divides it into Heaven, Earth, and Sky.
• Islam: Allah is eternal and created the universe by command. He created living creatures, angels, planets, and rain for vegetation.
• Christianity: Creation starts with "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." The Earth was initially formless and dark, leading to a seven-day creation account.

The Solar System

• Composed of celestial bodies bound by gravitational forces; dominated by the Sun.
• The solar system consists of 8 major planets, over 170 satellites, and 4 dwarf planets.
• The term "solar" originates from "sol," Latin for Sun.

Models of the Solar System

• World Turtle: Mythical giant turtle supporting the Earth; found in various cultures, including Hindu and indigenous American mythologies.
• Geocentric Model: Early theory placing the Earth at the universe's center, proposed by Claudius Ptolemy.
• Heliocentric Model: Developed by Nicolaus Copernicus, suggesting the Sun as the center; provided mathematical proofs for planetary positions.

The Sun

• Classified as a yellow dwarf star (G2V), despite its light appearing white.

Earth-Sun Distance

• Earth is approximately 151.87 million km from the Sun, located in the "Goldilocks zone." Sunlight reaches Earth in about 8.5 minutes.

The First Four Planets

• Mercury: Closest to the Sun, fastest orbiting and smallest planet, with gravity at 38% that of Earth’s.
• Venus: Brightest planet and Earth's twin, known as the evening star. Unique characteristics include a longer day than year, clockwise rotation, and being hotter than Mercury.
• Earth: Known as the Blue Planet, the only planet with known life; name derived from Old English and German terms for ground.

The Universe's Creation

• Big Bang Theory: Proposed by Alexander Friedman and Georges Lemaître; universe formed around 13.7 billion years ago from a compact point.
• Supporting Evidence:
  • Galaxies moving away (Edwin Hubble's discoveries).
  • Cosmic Microwave Background radiation (discovered by Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson).
  • Light element abundance aligning with Big Bang predictions.

Alternative Theories

• Steady State Theory: Proposed by Bondi, Gold, and Hoyle; suggests universe maintains density while expanding.
• Inflation Theory: Introduced by Alan Guth and others; proposes rapid expansion of the universe before traditional Big Bang expansion.

Minerals

• Found in everyday life; examples include hematite, chromite, copper, quartz, gold, feldspar, and fluoride.

Physical Properties of Minerals

• Crystal Habit: Shape of crystals categorized as equant, elongate, or platy.
• Luster: Reflective quality of minerals; can be metallic, glassy, or dull.
• Magnetism: Ability of minerals to attract to magnets; exemplified by magnetite.
• Specific Gravity: Ratio of a mineral's weight to an equal volume of water; varies among minerals.
• Taste, Odor, Feel: Some minerals exhibit distinctive tastes, smells, and textures (e.g., halite tastes like salt).

Chemical Properties of Minerals

• Characteristics: Reactivity with acids, presence of toxic substances, and potential radioactivity in certain minerals.
• Classification: Minerals categorized by chemical composition into native elements, silicates, oxides, sulfides, sulfates, halides, carbonates, phosphates, and mineraloids.

Explore the religious accounts of creation from Hinduism and Islam. Learn how these two faiths perceive the origins of the universe, the roles of their divine entities, and the philosophical implications behind creation. This quiz will deepen your understanding of diverse spiritual perspectives on the cosmos.