An Invitation to NASA Scientists to Understand the Holy Quraan

In their search of extraterrestrial life, namely nucleic acid-based life, scientists consider Mars as  a compelling scientific target and its exploration dates back to the Cold War era . The Mars exploration race began in October 1960, when the Soviet Union launched two probes four days apart, Marsnik 1 and Marsnik 2, which were intended to flyby the Red Planet, but both missions failed.

The United States quickly responded by launching Mariner 3 in 1964, which failed to accomplish its mission but Mariner 4 ,which was launched in 1965, succeeded in cruising past Mars and sending more than twenty photographs of the planet back to earth , and the mission was built on by sending more missions to the red planet over the following five decades some of which was a success such as Viking 1 and 2 in 1975, the Spirit and opportunity rovers which landed on Mars in 2004, the Mars Reconnaissance which arrived at the planet in 2006 , the Phoenix Lander in 2008 and recently , but not finally, the Curiosity rover ,which intended to search for some sort of microbial life on Mars, and landed on Mars in August 6 2012.

According to the Holy Quraan, Almighty God created seven heavens ( skies) and the earth in six phases:

قُلْ أَئِنَّكُمْ لَتَكْفُرُونَ بِالَّذِي خَلَقَ الْأَرْضَ فِي يَوْمَيْنِ وَتَجْعَلُونَ لَهُ أَندَادًا ۚ ذَٰلِكَ رَبُّ الْعَالَمِينَ

وَجَعَلَ فِيهَا رَوَاسِيَ مِن فَوْقِهَا وَبَارَكَ فِيهَا وَقَدَّرَ فِيهَا أَقْوَاتَهَا فِي أَرْبَعَةِ أَيَّامٍ سَوَاءً لِّلسَّائِلِينَ

ثُمَّ اسْتَوَىٰ إِلَى السَّمَاءِ وَهِيَ دُخَانٌ فَقَالَ لَهَا وَلِلْأَرْضِ ائْتِيَا طَوْعًا أَوْ كَرْهًا قَالَتَا أَتَيْنَا طَائِعِينَ

فَقَضَاهُنَّ سَبْعَ سَمَاوَاتٍ فِي يَوْمَيْنِ وَأَوْحَىٰ فِي كُلِّ سَمَاءٍ أَمْرَهَا ۚ وَزَيَّنَّا السَّمَاءَ الدُّنْيَا بِمَصَابِيحَ وَحِفْظًا ۚ ذَٰلِكَ تَقْدِيرُ الْعَزِيزِ الْعَلِيمِ

"Say: Is it that ye deny Him Who created the earth in two Days? And do ye join equals with Him? He is the Lord of (all) the Worlds () He set on the (earth), mountains standing firm, high above it, and bestowed blessings on the earth, and measure therein all things to give them nourishment in due proportion, in four Days, in accordance with (the needs of) those who see ()Moreover He comprehended in His design the sky, and it had been (as) smoke: He said to it and to the earth: "Come ye together, willingly or unwillingly." They said: "We do come (together), in willing obedience () So He completed them as seven firmaments in two Days, and He assigned to each heaven its duty and command. And We adorned the lower heaven with lights, and (provided it) with guard. Such is the Decree of (Him) the Exalted in Might, Full of Knowledge ()." (fussilat : 9-12)

And the astronomical  system ( which includes galaxies, suns (stars) ,planets, moons(satellites),and meteors ) is present in what is referred to in the Holy Quraan as" The Lower Heaven":

إِنَّا زَيَّنَّا السَّمَاءَ الدُّنْيَا بِزِينَةٍ الْكَوَاكِبِ

We have indeed decked the lower heaven with beauty (in) the planets(and the stars)

  Stars are extremely far apart (due to their inferno  nature):

فَلَا أُقْسِمُ بِمَوَاقِعِ النُّجُومِ وَإِنَّهُ لَقَسَمٌ لَّوْ تَعْلَمُونَ عَظِيمٌ

Furthermore I call to witness the setting of the Stars () And that is indeed a mighty adjuration if ye but knew

(Alwaqiaa: 75-76)

 

Therefore, stars visible by naked eye in the (lower ) sky must be  quite few  and outnumbered by planets .This implies that our solar system must include more planets than currently believed .

Will NASA Scientists find earth-like forms of life on Mars (or any other planet)?

To answer this question one must identify the factors necessary to make a world habitable. Making (our home) earth a reference, e.g. the conditions needed to sustain life on this goldilocks planet are required to exist on any other planet in order to harbor life:

  - Earth is the third planet away from the sun and revolves around it at a speed of 18.5 miles /second resulting in four seasons and also makes one rotation around it's own axis approximately each 24 hours with a tilt angle of 23 degrees which causes succession of day and night.

 - The earth possesses unique attributes amongst the rest of the solar planets that make it the "fittest place" for life to exist:

From the table, earth, as a mediocre planet in the solar system, possesses the necessary indices to sustain life whereas the rest of the system planets do not:

1-Atmosphere:

Earth has a sufficient-sized atmosphere that is divided into six layers:

A-Troposphere:

The nearest layer to earth and extends to about 12 kilometers above earth and it becomes thinner as altitude increases.

Troposphere consists of 78% Nitrogen,21% Oxygen which an essential element for life, and traces of Carbon Dioxide, Argon and water vapor hence all earth weather changes and climate systems take place in this layer ( this layer is the reason the Greenhouse phenomena occur as the troposphere layer absorbs all heat reflected from earth).

B-Stratosphere:

Extends about 50 kilometers above the troposphere and contains the so-called Ozone layer (Ozone, O3_, is an active form of oxygen) which is necessary to protect earth from harmful UV radiation by absorbing it .This layer experiences strong horizontal winds ideal for aviation.

C- Mesosphere:

Extends over the stratosphere to 85 kilometers above the earth surface. The temperature drops to as low as -120C in this layer which also has the so-called noctilucent clouds which are actually frozen water and seen as silvery wisps immediately after sunset.

D-Ionosphere:

 This is a charged layer that contains electrons and ions generated from ionization of atoms by sun UV radiation and cosmos radiation and plays an important role in wireless communications. The ionosphere reflects the charged particles ejected by the sun (the solar winds) creating a phenomena called Aurora or  the Northern and Southern Lights .

E- Thermosphere:

Extends to about 700 kilometers above the earth surface and contains traces of oxygen, helium and hydrogen which absorb cosmos radiation such as UV and X-ray hence gain very high speeds and temperature which may rise to 1500 C, nevertheless there is not much heat transfer due to a very low pressure in the thermosphere .

F-Exosphere:

The outermost layer of the atmosphere and dominated by hydrogen gas and this is where satellites orbit.

 

2- Gravity:

Earth gravity is a result of its inner core composition which is mainly made of iron and nickel. It keeps what's on earth in place and prevent it from flying off into space, a peculiarity that terrestrial planets lack.

 

3-Hydrosphere:

Consists mainly of oceans and inner seas which have saline water (97.5%) in addition to lakes, glaciers and underground water which have fresh water (2.5%).

Water affects all facets of life on earth. It is a major constituent of all living cells that allows them to function properly as a solvent or as a transporter of nutrients. Also, many mankind activities are linked to the availability of water . It is reservoir of dissolved gases thus sustains many aquatic forms of life .as well as the regulation of global temperature and climate.

Mars and other planets lack water and, therefore, unable to support life.

 

4-Biosphere:

Earth's biosphere is the area of our planet where living organisms survive and interact with both their environment and with other living organisms. This zone includes most of the hydrosphere, parts of the lower atmosphere, and the upper lithosphere (Earth's crust and upper mantle).

Recent discoveries have shown that life can exist in conditions that would be considered extreme by human standards, such as volcanic vents on the deep ocean floor and the cold, dry valleys of Antarctica.

The biosphere plays a profound role in sustaining life on earth by maintaining oxygen levels balanced as the photosynthesis process consumes carbon dioxide and liberates oxygen , necessary for respiration, in the atmosphere as well as providing food necessary to produce energy and growth.

 

5-Climate:

Unlike other planets of the solar system, earth has a moderate climate suitable for life which is adapted to a temperature range of 15 -80 C (compare with temperature on Mars with a range of 25 to -140C causing super freezing of all life fluids.). Also, earth  has an atmospheric pressure of 1.00 atm., which is " just right" to keep it's atmospheric mantle from escaping away hence, keeping the earth surface warm and prevents cosmic radiation from  reaching it.

 

6- The Sun:

 The sun is the light source to all solar planets including earth. Due to its ideal distance from the sun and spinning around its axis with tilt and around the sun, the earth receives a constant and regular amount of sunlight that is essential to plants and some micro-organisms to produce energy and prevents freezing of life.

 Other solar planets closer to sun (Mercury and Venus) receive too much heat thus these planets are not suitable to harbor life, whereas those distant from the sun (Mars, Jupiter, Saturn ,Uranus and Neptune) experience extreme low temperatures, due to lesser heat, that would freeze and kill living cells.

 

7- The moon:

The Moon is the only natural satellite of the earth and its importance is manifested in a few effects :

a- The moon gravity slows down the spinning of earth .Otherwise, wind would blow faster and days and nights would be shorter than they are and, therefore, life would look different.

b- The moon causes tides in oceans and thus affects sea life especially near coast areas.

c- The moon has a settling effect on the Earth's axis. It stops the axis of rotation of the Earth rotating wildly about like Mar's axis does for example. This means that the Earth has more stable climate.

d- The Moon also played a major role in the emergence and understanding of science. It helped us to understand our place in the universe, we learnt how to determine distances in the Solar System, and also gauge the size of distant celestial objects.

e- The moon calendar was known to many cultures and civilizations.

Therefore, due to the aforementioned reasons, earth is deemed the only planet in the solar system to sustain nucleic acid-based life and the multi-billion dollar projects to explore celestial life on Mars (or any other planet) is a mere futility from a scientific standpoint and money rather be diverted to develop the raw continent of Africa with its vast natural and human resources.

The question is why Earth is the only planet gifted as such by The Almighty God?

This is because mankind is the central dogma of creation and for that the Almighty Allah Has given him value and honor 

وَإِذْ قَالَ رَبُّكَ لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ إِنِّي جَاعِلٌ فِي الْأَرْضِ خَلِيفَةً ۖ قَالُوا أَتَجْعَلُ فِيهَا مَن يُفْسِدُ فِيهَا وَيَسْفِكُ الدِّمَاءَ وَنَحْنُ نُسَبِّحُ بِحَمْدِكَ وَنُقَدِّسُ لَكَ ۖ قَالَ إِنِّي أَعْلَمُ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُون

" Behold, thy Lord said to the angels: "I will create a vicegerent on earth." They said: "Wilt Thou place therein one who will make mischief therein and shed blood?- whilst we do celebrate Thy praises and glorify Thy holy (name)?" He said: "I know what ye know not. ( Albaqara : 30)

So, Man is the successor on earth by God's mandate on condition to rule according to His Law and "the heavens and the earth are geared to serve mankind". Verses  addressing  this fact are scattered throughout  the Holly Quraan and  do not clash with or confront modern scientific facts  because Almighty Allah is The Master of  such scientific facts  and He who  revealed the Holy Quraan  as well.  :

أَلَمْ تَرَوْا أَنَّ اللَّهَ سَخَّرَ لَكُم مَّا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَأَسْبَغَ عَلَيْكُمْ نِعَمَهُ ظَاهِرَةً وباطنه ۗ وَمِنَ النَّاسِ مَن يُجَادِلُ فِي اللَّهِ بِغَيْرِ عِلْمٍ وَلَا هُدًى وَلَا كِتَابٍ مُّنِيرٍ

" Do ye not see that Allah has subjected to your (use) all things in the heavens and on earth, and has made his bounties flow to you in exceeding measure, (both) seen and unseen? Yet there are among men those who dispute about Allah, without knowledge and without guidance, and without a Book to enlighten them!"( Lukman:20).

وَسَخَّرَ لَكُمُ اللَّيْلَ وَالنَّهَارَ وَالشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ ۖ وَالنُّجُومُ مُسَخَّرَاتٌ بِأَمْرِهِ ۗ إِنَّ فِي ذَٰلِكَ لَآيَاتٍ لِّقَوْمٍ يَعْقِلُونَ

"For you (God) subjected the night and the day, the sun and the moon; the stars are in subjection to His Command. Verily in this are signs for people who are wise."(Al-nahl: 12).

وَاللَّهُ أَنزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً فَأَحْيَا بِهِ الْأَرْضَ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا ۚ إِنَّ فِي ذَٰلِكَ لَآيَةً لِّقَوْمٍ يَسْمَعُونَ

وَإِنَّ لَكُمْ فِي الْأَنْعَامِ لَعِبْرَةً ۖ نُّسْقِيكُم مِّمَّا فِي بُطُونِهِ مِن بَيْنِ فَرْثٍ وَدَمٍ لَّبَنًا خَالِصًا سَائِغًا لِّلشَّارِبِينَ

" And Allah sends down rain from the skies, and gives therewith life to the earth after its death: verily in this is a Sign for those who listen () "And verily in cattle (too) will ye find an instructive sign. From what is within their bodies between excretions and blood, We produce, for your drink, milk, pure and agreeable to those wh And from the fruit of the date-palm and the vine, ye get out wholesome drink and food: behold, in this also is a sign for those who are wise. "(alnahl: 65-66)

وَأَوْحَىٰ رَبُّكَ إِلَى النَّحْلِ أَنِ اتَّخِذِي مِنَ الْجِبَالِ بُيُوتًا وَمِنَ الشَّجَرِ وَمِمَّا يَعْرِشُونَ

 ثُمَّ كُلِي مِن كُلِّ الثَّمَرَاتِ فَاسْلُكِي سُبُلَ رَبِّكِ ذُلُلًا ۚ يَخْرُجُ مِن بُطُونِهَا شَرَابٌ مُّخْتَلِفٌ أَلْوَانُهُ فِيهِ شِفَاءٌ لِّلنَّاسِ ۗ إِنَّ فِي ذَٰلِكَ لَآيَةً لِّقَوْمٍ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ

" And thy Lord taught the Bee to build its cells in hills, on trees, and in (men´s) habitations;

Then to eat of all the produce (of the earth), and find with skill the spacious paths of its Lord: there issues from within their bodies a drink of varying colours, wherein is healing for men: verily in this is a Sign for those who give thought. o drink it ".(alnahl :68-69)

وَهُوَ الَّذِي جَعَلَ لَكُمُ اللَّيْلَ لِبَاسًا وَالنَّوْمَ سُبَاتًا وَجَعَلَ النَّهَارَ نُشُورًا

"And He it is Who makes the Night as a Robe for you, and Sleep as Repose, and makes the Day (as it were) a Resurrection ".(Alfurqan-47)

وَهُوَ الَّذِي أَرْسَلَ الرِّيَاحَ بُشْرًا بَيْنَ يَدَيْ رَحْمَتِهِ ۚ وَأَنزَلْنَا مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً طَهُورًا

"And He it is Who sends the winds as heralds of glad tidings, going before His mercy, and We send down pure water from the sky "(Alfurqan-48)

أَلَمْ تَرَ أَنَّ اللَّهَ يُولِجُ اللَّيْلَ فِي النَّهَارِ وَيُولِجُ النَّهَارَ فِي اللَّيْلِ وَسَخَّرَ الشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ كُلٌّ يَجْرِي إِلَىٰ أَجَلٍ مُّسَمًّى وَأَنَّ اللَّهَ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ خَبِيرٌ

"Seest thou not that Allah merges Night into Day and he merges Day into Night; that He has subjected the sun, and the moon (to his Law), each running its course for a term appointed; and that Allah is well-acquainted with all that ye do?"(Lukman-29)

وَمَا يَسْتَوِي الْبَحْرَانِ هَٰذَا عَذْبٌ فُرَاتٌ سَائِغٌ شَرَابُهُ وَهَٰذَا مِلْحٌ أُجَاجٌ ۖ وَمِن كُلٍّ تَأْكُلُونَ لَحْمًا طَرِيًّا وَتَسْتَخْرِجُونَ حِلْيَةً تَلْبَسُونَهَا ۖ وَتَرَى الْفُلْكَ فِيهِ مَوَاخِرَ لِتَبْتَغُوا مِن فَضْلِهِ وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ

"Nor are the two bodies of flowing water alike,- the one palatable, sweet, and pleasant to drink, and the other, salt and bitter. Yet from each (kind of water) do ye eat flesh fresh and tender, and ye extract ornaments to wear; and thou seest the ships therein that plough the waves, that ye may seek (thus) of the Bounty of Allah that ye may be grateful ".(Fatir-12)

Final word:

In his book " The Bible, The Quran and Science " published by American Trust  Publications in 1979 , The French Surgeon Dr. Maurice Bucaille said :

"The relationship between the Qur'an and science is a priori a surprise, especially when it turns out to be one of harmony and not of discord. A confrontation between a religious book and the secular ideas proclaimed by science is perhaps, in the eyes of many people  today, something of a paradox. The majority of today's scientists, with a small number of exceptions of course, are indeed bound up in materialist theories, and have only indifference or contempt for religious questions which they often consider to be founded on legend. In the West moreover, when science and religion are discussed, people are quite willing to mention Judaism and Christianity among the religions referred to, but they hardly ever think of Islam. So many false judgments based on inaccurate ideas have indeed been made about it, that today it is very difficult to form an exact notion of the reality of Islam.

As a prelude to any confrontation between the Islamic Revelation and science, it would seem essential that an outline be given of a religion that is so little known in the West. The totally erroneous statements made about Islam in the West are sometimes the result of ignorance, and sometimes of systematic denigration. The most serious of all the untruths told about it are however those dealing with facts; for while mistaken opinions are excusable, the presentation of facts running contrary to the reality is not".

ABDULHADI S. ATTUWAIJRI

RIYADH