Dose Correlation (rads to watts per second) -Geological sciences link

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In a message dated 9/28/98 9:43:19 PM !!!First Boot!!!, CAW@nrc.gov writes:

<< Before we discount radioisotopes as heat sources, however, it is well to
remember  that it is the heating of the earth by radioactivity in the depths
of the earth that  makes the earth warm enough to support life as we know it.
 
 Charlie Willis
 caw@nrc.gov >>

I may be wrong, but it seems to me that the major factor in making the earth a
habitable planet is it's ability to sustain an atmosphere with enough carbon
dioxide to make the greenhouse effect maintain temperatures within narrow
bounds such that life can exist, not the decay heat of radionuclides within
the earth. Without the greenhouse effect at work within tight bounds [due
mainly to the earth being of a certain size, with a certain gravitational
field, able to hold its evolving atmosphere in place] the temperature balance
of the earth after receiving its share of solar radiation would lead to too
much heat loss with heat being radiated back to deep space [and frigid
temperatures unable to support life], or too much heat being retained with
temperatures too high to support life as well.

The carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere are regulated by various feedback
loops between the atmosphere and terrestrial and aquatic biosphere which has
become part of the Gaia hypothesis and which is presently the subject of
expanding interdisciplinary research.

Stewart Farber, MS Public Health
Public Health Sciences
radproject@usa.net
Phone/Fax: (401) 727-4947
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