ISLAM

LOCATION : Mecca

HISTORY : 616

NAME : Quran, Surah Al-Anbiya, verse 32

NEWS: And We have made the sky a protected ceiling. And they turn away from the proofs thereof.

SCIENCE

LOCATION : United States of America, Iowa

DATE : 1958

NAME : James Van ALLEN

NEWS : The belt that protects the Earth from harmful rays

The Van Allen belts is the name given to the belt where electrically charged particles caught in the Earth’s magnetic field are collected. It is two radiation belts in the shape of a bagel, inner and outer. It was named after James Van Allen, who designed the satellite. The rays emitted by the solar winds, especially as a result of frequent flares in the Sun, are powerful enough to destroy life on Earth if the Van Allen Belts were not there. Without these belts, at best, the Earth would be a planet covered with pits like the surface of the Moon. The Earth has been designed in such a way that it is favourable for the life of living beings and these belts have been given the task of preventing harmful rays coming from space.

The Holy Qur’an foretold this news 1342 years ago.

Apart from the Van Allen belts, there are other parts of the sky that have been assigned the task. The existence of seven layers and the separate duties of each of them, as reported by the Qur’an, are also among the information available to today’s science.

As a verse says, “… He has revealed to each heaven its work and its formation.”[208] Let us briefly examine, scientifically, the work and formation of the layers of the created sky.

Troposphere: It is the lowest part of the atmosphere. This layer, in which we also live, covers about 75 per cent of the whole atmospheric mass. Meteorological events and all clouds are formed in this layer. As you rise in the troposphere, both pressure and temperature decrease. The energy coming from the Sun to the Earth is kept in the troposphere. 75% of the gases in the atmosphere and all of the water vapour are in this layer. It is the layer with the highest density.

Stratosphere Stratosphere extends from the troposphere up to 50 km. altitude. Climate events are not seen, temperature change is almost non-existent. Ozone, which is necessary for life, is produced in this layer. As the altitude increases, the air becomes thinner.

Mesosphere: 50 km. starting from the altitudes above and extending up to about 80 km. above the sea surface. The temperature drops rapidly in the mesosphere.

Ionosphere: In this layer, gases are in the form of ions. Therefore, radio waves are transmitted very well. It is divided into various layers according to its properties such as radiation and reflection. It is the layer above the mesosphere. This layer, which extends from approximately 80 km to 500 km altitude, is also called the Ionosphere. In this layer, air is very sparse and gas molecules are sparsely distributed. The particles in this layer are ionised by the rays coming from the Sun, i.e. they become conductors of electricity. Therefore, it acts as a reflector for radio waves.

Magnetosphere (Magnetosphere): This layer is called the magnetosphere or the sphere of attraction. This area, which is covered by an intense radiation field on Earth, is called the Van Allen Field. It is divided into two belts and completely surrounds the earth.

Heterosphere: It is the layer between 100 km and 1000 km. In this layer, in addition to nitrogen, light gases such as hydrogen and helium are abundant.

Exosphere: It is the outermost layer of the atmosphere. It is sparsely composed of hydrogen and helium atoms. Since there is no clear boundary here, there is a transition to the void. Artificial satellites are located in this layer. Since it is the last layer of the atmosphere, its boundary is not clear. In this layer, gases are very rare and gravity is very low.

After giving a superficial description of the working principles of these seven layers, which are in constant formation, let us see how the Holy Qur’an gives us this information.

Allah (swt) says the following:

He is the One Who has created seven heavens, one in perfect harmony with the other. You will not find any contradiction or inappropriateness in the creation of the Most Merciful. Behold, turn your eye round and round; do you see any crack (any disorder or distortion)?[209]

[208] Surah Fussilet Verse 12

[209] Surat al-Mulk, Verse 3