The Water in Your Glass Might Be Older Than the Sun | Hacker News Reader

The Water in Your Glass Might Be Older Than the Sun

nytimes.com

53 pointsDiabloD320 comments

Almost every hydrogen atom in existence is older than the sun. Wild guess majority of the oxygen.

But due to the photosynthesis cycle the water not captured in icecaps is pretty new. Probably couple of 10s of millions years old.

Yea, it was extremely unclear what the author meant by "age". If the author is defining the age of the water by the time the hydrogen bonded to the oxygen, and the age of the sun by when it started fusing, then I presume you're right.

Do you have a source for the claim that the majority of the Earth's liquid water has been through a photosynthesis cycle? Seems plausible but not obvious.

If I say for source - kids documentary I watched 20 years ago will it fly?

What a weird article. It says nobody knows where deuterium comes from ("One idea is that much of the heavy water formed in the interstellar cloud and then traveled across the solar system."), and abruptly ends. They could've at least tried exploring or explaining the subject a little - right now it reads like half an abstract.

http://arxiv.org/pdf/1409.7398.pdf

The paper cited in OA contains the physical model they used to simulate the dynamics and mentions the monte-carlo analysis they set up.

I point students to Primo Levi's essay about carbon in his Periodic Table when they want to think philosophically. This one ties in as well. As another comment points out, the elements go back a long way, especially hydrogen!

I must confess that I had always assumed that all the water on Earth (along with all the rock, metal, etc) was older than the sun.

If only half the water is that old, where did the other half come from?

Read the article.

I did read the article. I have now read the article again. Nowhere does it answer my question.

I can think of a number of natural mechanisms that would create water e.g. fire but none that could create the massive amounts of water to fill half of the oceans.

Was it life? If it was formed on Earth then where did all the hydrogen (and oxygen) come from?

If you look at the Wikipedia page about it it mostly dodges the question:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Origin_of_water_on_Earth

So, in case anyone here is more knowledgeable about the subject I'd be fascinated (and grateful) to here what the current theory is.

Hydrogen is very, very abundant, so the creation of water is always going to be a thing as long as there is oxygen. We also know that the period referred to as the Late Heavy Bombardment is likely to have showered the already formed Earth with water-rich ice from the outer solar system. Most of this water would be older than the sun.

The article only mentions the Great Oxygenation Event, but it's worth noting that biological organisms today are breaking down and creating water all the time as an essential part of their metabolism. It's not inconceivable that a sizeable portion of water was originally synthesised out of rocky compounds and atmospheric gases (such as methane) by archaic organisms.

All in all, we have identified many different sources for water on Earth, signs point to all of them being a factor. We're just not sure how large the individual factors are, but many people consider ice from the Late Heavy Bombardment to be the biggest one.

I think you're reading a different article to the rest of us? Nowhere does it mention the Great Oxygenation Event.

For reference, sambeau linked to this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Origin_of_water_on_Earth - and specifically asked about more info on that. I know it was meant as a snarky comment, but yes, we're talking different article here.

I had the same belief and question as the parent post you replied to. I've now read the article for a second time, and it seems to only discuss the extrateresstrial half of the water.

Does it mean Earth is older than Sun?

The stuff that makes up the sun also also older than the sun..

Turtles all the way down!

Another crazy fact: The amount of molecules in a drop of water is significantly more than the total drops of water on earth.

Statistically this means that you have likely tasted water molecules from Jesus's blood and piss. Evidence of the holy communion.

And with every breath you take, you inhale millions of molecules of air that were once inside Hitler (and every other person that was alive sufficiently long ago).

Couldn't resist making thing into a Happy Easter greeting card: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CgtuYxRWsAItlXN.jpg:large

Only if your drops are freaking huge: http://chemistry.about.com/od/waterchemistry/fl/How-Many-Ato...

Doesn't this depend on how big you make the drops?

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