Earth Space Science                                                                                                   

Due Date:  Friday, November 20th

 

 

 

 

Standing on the Moon

 

 

 

This homework assignment is a thought experiment.  You should feel comfortable using both the knowledge you have attained in class so far, any resources at your disposal, as well as your imagination. 

 

 

 

 

In 1989 a man by the name of Robert Hunter wrote a song for the next Grateful Dead album (Built To Last) about having a unique perspective of the world and titled it:

 

 

“Standing on the Moon”

(listen to a live version of the song on archive.org, in grey box on right go to track #19)

 

 

Standing on the moon, I got no cobweb on my shoe

Standing on the moon, I'm feeling so alone and blue

I see the Gulf of Mexico as tiny as a tear

The coast of California must be somewhere over here

 

Standing on the moon, I see the battle rage below

Standing on the moon, I see the soldiers come and go

There's a metal flag beside me someone planted long ago

Old glory standing stiffly, crimson, white and indigo

Old glory standing stiffly, crimson, white and indigo

Indigo

 

I see all of South East Asia; I can see El Salvador

I hear the cries of children and the other songs of war

It's like a mighty melody that rings down from the sky 

Standing here upon the moon I watch it all roll by 

 

Standing on the moon, I see a shadow on the sun

Standing on the moon, the stars go fading one by one

I hear a cry of victory, another of defeat

A scrap of age-old lullaby down some forgotten street

 

Standing on the moon, where talk is cheap and vision true

Standing on the moon, but I would rather be with you

Somewhere in San Francisco on a back porch in July

Just looking up to heaven at this crescent in the sky

In the sky

 

Standing on the moon with nothing left to do

A lovely view of heaven but I'd rather be with you

A lovely view of heaven but I'd rather be with you

Be with you

I'd rather be with you

 

 

 

 

 

This famous tune will be the inspiration behind the journey you are about to embark upon. 

 

What was Earth like 4.6 billion years ago, just after the formation of the moon (after the Giant Impact Collision that created it)?

 

In this thought experiment you are alive just after the formation of the moon (Mars-sized object hitting Earth and knocking off a large chunk of it into orbit, which becomes the moon). 

 

Questions: 

 

• What was the early Earth like and how was it different or the same as Earth is today?
• What did the young Earth look like?  Assume that you are able to “zoom in” to any particular spot (kind of like Google Earth) or describe earth as a whole.
• What observations could you make about Earth's atmosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, or biosphere?
• Does this planet look like the Oasis of the solar system?

 

 

Your job is to play the role of Earth Historian for future generations.  You should make some detailed observations of Earth from your position atop the Moon. 

 

Your audience is humans living in the 21^st century on planet earth.  Your aim is to educate citizens of today’s society on what Earth was like in its early days and why it was the same or different.

 

How will I present my findings?   STUDENT CHOICE  (I encourage students to get creative for this assignment.  I recommend student films, newspaper articles, or other types of “reporting” type presentations as opposed to essays or PowerPoint presentations).

 

 

 

Some major areas of interest may include Earth’s:

Atmosphere Did it exist?  What was it made of?  Was the sky blue?

 

 

Geosphere Was earth a solid rocky surface?

-mountains Were there mountains?  Which were the highest?

-continents Did they look the same?  Where were they located?

What other types of geologic features were present or active?

 

Biosphere What types of life, if any, existed on earth?

 

 

Hydrosphere Was earth covered with water like it is today?

 

-Temperature Was it hot on earth, cold?

 

Dynamic Earth/Cycles/Uniformitarianism,

Was earth changing early on? 

What types of changes were occurring?