If it weren't for the Sky . . .

Day two and three of the Great Creation Story witness two stunning wonder-of-water events – the emergence of the atmosphere and the separation of dry land from surrounding oceans.

Two crucial environmental events that define the Earth as we know it! Today we’ll consider the first – and in the next post, the second.

The troposphere – what we commonly call Sky, but including the air around us – is a fragile and invisible membrane between us and the cold dark. A mere 15 kilometers of space between sea-level and the highest clouds holds most of our air. It’s where most of our weather happens.

Even the 50 kilometers out to the ozone layer is proportionately thinner than the skin of an apple, but it is a complex and highly functional domain.

Clouds ride over our heads on an intricate balance of physics - pressure, temperature and other forces - that sustain a crucial water cycle of evaporation and precipitation.

Air is sturdy enough to let birds and airliners fly, yet light enough for us to inhale. It carries fog to the canopy of redwood forests, ruggedly deflects or dismantles meteorites and radiation, yet translucent to display starlight, moonlight and rainbows and the spark of fire-flies.

The Genesis Creation Hymn says succinctly,
God said, Let there be a space between the waters, to separate the waters of the heavens from the waters of the earth. And that is what happened.
Genesis 1:6-7 NLT

Astrophycist Hugh Ross says that the chances of getting the physics and chemistry of this atmosphere right were less than one in a billion! Whew! Lucky us!  Take a deep breath - and thank Earth-Maker for Air - and for such creative, generous hospitality!  

Air is some wonder-full gift!  Normally we’re as oblivious to air as fish are to water. We take it for granted. But let the weather change – or let human mis-management degrade air quality or disrupt the delicate carbon balance of the atmosphere and we can be in serious trouble.

As in every molecule of the universe, this wonder of the world, our delicate vital atmosphere is both gift and responsibility. It calls forth wonder and appreciation; it should evoke response - gratitude and stewardship.

In the next post, we’ll look at the inter-connectedness of land. sea and sky, but I invite your comments.

► What amazes you about the atmosphere of our planet?

► What concerns you most?