Nature
The word nature traces its roots to the Latin term natura, which meant essential qualities or innate disposition. Ancient Greek philosophers used the word physis to describe the intrinsic characteristics of plants and animals developing on their own accord. Homer first applied this concept in reference to a plant's properties when Hermes showed an herb to Odysseus in the Odyssey. The translation of natural philosophy into mathematical principles by Isaac Newton in 1687 marked a shift toward viewing nature as a passive reality governed by divine laws. During the mid-15th century, the term physical emerged as a synonym for natural within scholarly texts. Modern usage distinguishes between things that exist independently and those created by human consciousness.
Earth formed approximately 4.54 billion years ago from the solar nebula alongside the Sun and other planets. The Moon appeared roughly 20 million years after Earth's initial formation. Volcanic activity and outgassing produced the primordial atmosphere while condensing water vapor created oceans and other water sources. A self-replicating molecule likely emerged around 4 billion years ago during the Hadean or Archean eons. Continents have broken apart and recombined over hundreds of millions of years forming supercontinents like Rodinia and Pangaea. Rodinia began breaking apart about 750 million years ago before Pannotia dissolved around 540 million years ago. Pangaea fractured approximately 180 million years ago leading to the current continental arrangement. Glaciers covered much of the planet during the Snowball Earth hypothesis preceding the Cambrian explosion.
The Earth's atmosphere consists mostly of nitrogen and oxygen with smaller amounts of carbon dioxide and argon. Gravity holds this thin layer of gases in place while the ozone layer depletes ultraviolet radiation reaching the surface. Weather occurs almost exclusively in the lower part of the atmosphere serving as a convective system for heat redistribution. Lightning strikes can cause wildfires while heavy rain leads to flooding and mudslides across various regions. Ocean currents distribute heat energy from equatorial waters to polar regions moderating temperature differences between seasons. The climate of any region depends on factors including topology prevailing winds and proximity to large bodies of water. Global temperatures are increasing today while regional climates undergo noticeable changes affecting ecosystems worldwide.
Water covers 71 percent of the Earth's surface forming oceans that hold 96.5 percent of all surface water. Only 1.6 percent exists below ground in aquifers while 0.001 percent resides in the air as vapor or clouds. Oceans average around 35 parts per thousand salinity ranging between 30 to 38 ppt globally. Lakes form inland basins larger than ponds and fed by rivers within mountainous areas or rift zones. Streams serve as conduits connecting fragmented habitats during ongoing extinction events threatening biodiversity. Rivers flow toward oceans lakes seas or other rivers collecting precipitation through surface runoff and groundwater recharge. The Iguazu Falls straddle the border between Brazil and Argentina showcasing massive water flows. Titan Saturn's largest moon hosts lakes of ethane mixed with methane unlike any other known world.
Over 75 billion tons of biomass exist across various environments within the biosphere integrating land rocks water and air. More than two million species have been identified yet estimates suggest actual numbers range from several million to over 50 million. Microorganisms remain microscopic smaller than human eyes can see yet found almost everywhere liquid water exists including Earth's interior. Unicellular life dominated until about a billion years ago when multicellular organisms began appearing. Photosynthesis allowed sun energy to create conditions for complex life forms accumulating oxygen in the atmosphere. Plants comprise over nine-tenths of total biomass supporting animal life heavily dependent on their existence. Human mass accounts for roughly 0.6 percent of global biomass despite disproportionate environmental impact. Amazon rainforests shared between Colombia and Brazil contain the largest diversity of species on Earth today.
A 2020 study published in Nature found anthropogenic mass outweighs all living biomass on Earth with plastic exceeding combined land and marine animals. Only about 3 percent of terrestrial surface remains ecologically intact according to a 2021 Frontiers in Forests and Global Change report. Roughly one million species face extinction within decades due to rapid human economic growth displacing other life forms. Annual global subsidies damaging nature conservatively cost between four and six trillion dollars annually. Agriculture adopted around the 9th millennium BCE cleared large tracts reducing forestation wetlands and habitat availability. British artists John Constable and J.M.W. Turner captured natural beauty during the Romantic movement in the 1800s before religious scenes dominated art. Philip Cafaro professor at Colorado State University stated that biodiversity loss stems from rapidly expanding economies. The Holocene extinction event represents the fastest mass extinction ever recorded occurring within current human history.
Visible components compose only 4.9 percent of total mass while dark matter accounts for 26.8 percent and dark energy makes up 68.3 percent. Stars form within galaxy structures spanning up to 100,000 light years in scale across the observable universe. Galaxy clusters group into superclusters extending hundreds of millions of light years linked by filaments surrounding vast nearly empty voids. Outer space contains blackbody radiation left over from the Big Bang permeated by electromagnetic radiation magnetic fields and cosmic rays. Mars possessed liquid water on its surface in distant past though most remains frozen today. Europa Jupiter's fourth-largest moon may host a subsurface ocean potentially capable of supporting life. Astronomers have discovered extrasolar Earth analogs lying within habitable zones surrounding stars despite limited observational data. The visible universe follows cosmological principles appearing uniformly isotropic and homogeneous in all directions observed from Earth.
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Common questions
What is the origin of the word nature?
The word nature traces its roots to the Latin term natura, which meant essential qualities or innate disposition. Ancient Greek philosophers used the word physis to describe the intrinsic characteristics of plants and animals developing on their own accord.
When did Earth form according to scientific estimates?
Earth formed approximately 4.54 billion years ago from the solar nebula alongside the Sun and other planets. The Moon appeared roughly 20 million years after Earth's initial formation.
How much water covers the surface of Earth?
Water covers 71 percent of the Earth's surface forming oceans that hold 96.5 percent of all surface water. Only 1.6 percent exists below ground in aquifers while 0.001 percent resides in the air as vapor or clouds.
Which species face extinction due to human economic growth?
Roughly one million species face extinction within decades due to rapid human economic growth displacing other life forms. The Holocene extinction event represents the fastest mass extinction ever recorded occurring within current human history.
What percentage of total mass is visible matter in the universe?
Visible components compose only 4.9 percent of total mass while dark matter accounts for 26.8 percent and dark energy makes up 68.3 percent. Stars form within galaxy structures spanning up to 100,000 light years in scale across the observable universe.