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You are here: Home / Space / Why Is Most of Earth’s Surface Underwater and Where Did the Water On Earth Come From?

Why Is Most of Earth’s Surface Underwater and Where Did the Water On Earth Come From?

February 10, 2020 by Karen Hill

Earth began, like the other terrestrial planets, as a very hot mass of volcanic material from the newly formed Sun.

The volcanoes released water vapor, which rose, cooled, and formed clouds, which precipitated.

The rain hastened the general cooling of the planet until Earth was cool enough that the water began pooling.

After billions of years, water covered the entire planet.

Another theory is that comets, or meteorites that contained water from the outer regions of the main asteroid belt collided with the Earth and helped fill the earth’s oceans.

Measurements of the ratio of the hydrogen isotopes deuterium and protium point to asteroids as a possible source, since similar percentage impurities in carbon-rich chondrites were found in oceanic water.

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Filed Under: Space

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « How Did Land On Planet Earth Develop and How Did Volcanic Activity and Basalt Help Create the Earth’s Crust?
Next Post: Where Is Ozone Layer Located In the Earth’s Atmosphere and Who First Discovered the Ozone Layer? »

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