A brief history and future prospect of earth science

Earth science is an ancient and young science. It is ancient because the germination and accumulation of knowledge about earth science began from the day when human beings were born. It is said that it is young because the main discipline of earth science was really founded nearly a hundred years ago, and so far, although earth science has developed into a relatively perfect scientific system, there are still many major basic theoretical problems that have not been solved, and new major scientific problems are constantly emerging. The development history of earth science can be roughly divided into three stages, namely, the stage of germination and accumulation of ancient earth science knowledge (before17th century), the stage of establishment and initial development of major disciplines of earth science (from17th to19th century), and the stage of revolution and all-round development of earth science (from 20th century to present). At present, earth science is in a critical period of innovation, and it can be predicted that in the near future, earth science will enter a new and more mature development stage.

(A) the germination and accumulation of ancient earth science knowledge (1before the 7th century)

The knowledge about earth science is closely related to human life, and the germination of its thoughts can be traced back to ancient times. With the development of human civilization, the knowledge of earth science is accumulating. China is an ancient civilization with a long history. Its earth science thought germinated early, and its knowledge accumulation is unmatched by any other country. Now, we can see several examples.

Yu Gong, Shan Hai Jing and Guan Zi are the earliest geographical, geological, hydrological and meteorological works in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period (770 ~ 22 BC1). "Gong Yu" records the mineral resources, mountains and rivers in China during Dayu's flood control in the 2nd/Kloc-0th century BC. Shan Hai Jing not only describes mountains, rivers, lakes, swamps, climate and meteorology, but also describes 72 kinds of rocks (ores) and minerals (metallic and nonmetallic minerals) and more than 440 mineral deposits. This book divides minerals into four categories: gold, jade, stone and earth, which is the earliest classification of minerals in the world. The book Guanzi brilliantly discusses the knowledge of metal deposits and prospecting, and points out the scientific method of using mineral assemblage and "iron hat" as prospecting criteria. The book also correctly analyzes the process of river lateral circulation and lateral erosion forming meanders.

Zhang Heng, an outstanding scientist in the Eastern Han Dynasty, made the world's first seismograph-Houfeng seismograph in 132. The Longxi earthquake, which occurred 650 kilometers away, was correctly detected in Luoyang at 138 (Figure 0-5).

Notes on Water Mirror is a famous geoscience work written by Li Daoyuan, an outstanding geographer in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, on the basis of studying predecessors' works and combining his own practical investigation, from 5 12 to 5 18 years. This book covers a wide range (including China and some neighboring areas), including rivers, waterfalls, lakes, sandstorms, caves, volcanoes, earthquakes, landslides, hot springs, meteorites, fossils, minerals, rocks and minerals. It still has reference value.

Figure 0-5 Zhang Heng's waiting seismograph and its brief principle

(Quoted from Xu Bangliang, 1994)

Meng Qian Bi Tan written by Shen Kuo in Song Dynasty (103 1 ~ 1095) is an encyclopedic brilliant work, including meteorites, earthquakes, minerals, mineral deposits, fossils, rivers, groundwater, land and sea changes, topographic mapping and so on. For example, the book discusses the erosion and precipitation of running water; It is inferred that the North China Plain is an alluvial plain formed by rivers transporting sediment from upstream to downstream. Shen Kuo also inferred that this place thousands of miles away from the sea was the seaside in ancient times according to the conch and mussel fossils seen between the cliffs at the eastern foot of Taihang Mountain. He also speculated on the changes of paleogeography and paleoclimate based on fossils. Shen Kuo's correct understanding of fossils was 400 years earlier than the similar view put forward by Italian Leonardo da Vinci. The ancient and modern analogy method he used to analyze geological problems was more than 700 years earlier than the method of "from the present to the past" applied by Birler in Principles of Geology. Shen Kuo also used the scientific term "oil" for the first time, which has been used ever since.

Travels of Xu Xiake is a documentary work written by Xu Hongzu in Ming Dynasty (1586 ~ 164 1), which gives a very valuable account of karst, volcano, hot springs, hydrology, landforms and minerals in many areas of China.

Wu Kai in the Heavenly Palace was written by the Song Dynasty in the Ming Dynasty (1587 ~ 166 1? ), the source, shape and properties of nonmetallic minerals are recorded in detail; According to the hardness and volatile matter of coal, the earliest classification of coal in the world is put forward. In particular, the mining engineering technology in China is systematically discussed for the first time, and mineral mining, underground support, ventilation, mine filling and ore washing are described in detail.

It can be seen that China's ancient earth science thought is very active, and he has accumulated rich theoretical and practical knowledge, and his research and achievements in this field are among the best in the world. However, due to China's closed-door feudal society (especially in the later period), it attached importance to Confucian classics, ignored production technology and natural science knowledge, and engaged in cultural autocracy, which seriously hindered the development of science and prevented some major disciplines of modern earth science from being born in this fertile land of China.

The germination and accumulation of ancient geological knowledge abroad are mainly concentrated in Europe.

Ancient Greek scholars Pythagoras (about 57 1 ~ 497 BC), Aristotle (384 ~ 342 BC) and Dio Flaster (370 ~ 287 BC) all observed and explained the volcanic eruption, earthquake and the formation of the Nile Delta, and obtained the concept of land-sea change according to the shell fossils in the rock strata. They also made a preliminary study on some rocks and minerals.

Strappo in ancient Rome (63 BC-20 AD) wrote Geography, which discussed many geological problems such as fossils, land and sea changes, volcanoes, earthquakes, river transport, sedimentation and so on. In 77 AD, Pliny Prini wrote Natural History, which specifically discussed minerals, including all kinds of minerals used at that time, building stones, ores and deposits, mining and metallurgical methods. Contemporary seneca wrote "Natural Problems" and other books, discussed the problems related to earthquakes, groundwater and surface water, and realized the erosion of rivers on valleys.

14 ~ 16 The Renaissance movement in Europe brought vitality to the development of earth science and prepared conditions for the establishment of some major disciplines of earth science.

From the end of 15 to the beginning of 16, Columbus and Magellan successively sailed around the world, which proved that the earth was spherical and had a preliminary understanding of the outline of the ocean and the continent. From 1530 to 1540, Copernicus wrote his masterpiece "On the Operation of Celestial Bodies" and put forward "Heliocentrism". This has played an important role in promoting the earth science research in this period.

Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci (1452 ~ 15 19) led the canal excavation project in his early years, and he made careful observation and research on fossils. He believes that the marine shell fossils found in inland or high mountains today are creatures that first grew in seawater and were later buried by sediments, and thus infer the history of land and sea changes. He also clearly pointed out that the earth is a book, earlier than written records, and the task of science is to read the historical traces of the earth itself.

Agricola of Germany (1494 ~ 1555) wrote seven geological monographs, which not only described the development of German mining industry, but also classified minerals according to their physical properties, and discussed the formation and relationship between minerals and metal deposits, involving paleontology and other issues. Later people called it "the father of mineralogy".

(2) Establishment and preliminary development of major disciplines of earth science (17 ~19th century)

For meteorology, from ancient times to16th century, it was limited to fragmentary qualitative observation and description, and there was no independent science. 17th century, due to the development of industry and natural sciences, especially the achievements of physics, more sophisticated meteorological instruments were invented one after another, and the theory of meteorology was greatly improved, making meteorology gradually develop into an independent science.

Italian physicist and astronomer Galileo invented the thermometer in 1593, and Italian physicist and mathematician Torricelli invented the barometer in 1643. Thanks to thermometers, barometers and other meteorological instruments, 1653 established a meteorological observatory in northern Italy, and since then many countries have also established meteorological stations. Due to extensive meteorological observation and abundant data, the study of meteorology has been deepened gradually. Since then, with the development of radio communication technology, meteorological observation results can be quickly spread to all parts of the country, making it possible to compile and study weather maps. The weather chart developed rapidly from 1860 to 1865. At the end of 19, the high-altitude meteorology of small-scale high-altitude detection has begun.

In earth science, the creation of geology is of epoch-making significance. Europe began to enter the industrial revolution in the18th century. With the improvement of productivity and the rapid development of modern industrialization, the demand for minerals is increasing day by day, which promotes the prospecting and geological survey, makes the geological knowledge and data accumulate rapidly, and gradually forms a systematic geological theory and research method, so geology is born as an independent science.

In the process of establishing geology, academic debate has played an important role in promoting it. At that time, the debate was between the theory of God of Wealth and the theory of water, and between the theory of homogeneity and the theory of catastrophe.

According to the theory of water, all the rocks that make up the earth's crust are crystallized and precipitated from primitive marine materials. They deny the existence of crustal movement and insist that the earth has not changed much since it acquired its present form. The representative of "Water Theory" is Weilner (1750 ~ 18 17), a professor of mineralogy at Frejborg Institute of Mining. He has made outstanding contributions to mineralogical research. Because of his rich knowledge and eloquence, he is famous in Europe and has played an important role in spreading geology. Weilner began to give lectures in Frejborg on 1775, and the "Water City Theory" rose. Because of his reputation, many disciples and admirers, and the support of the church, the "Water City Theory" occupied a dominant position in Europe in the late18th century.

The representative of "plutonic theory" is Scottish geologist Hutton, who found that granite veins are invading sedimentary rocks (with baking and condensation edges), and thought that besides sedimentary rocks, there are magmatic rocks and metamorphic rocks, and that the crustal evolution is slow, and the changes in the past are similar to those in modern times. He correctly discussed the causes of the three major rocks and the influence of crustal movement. Hutton published his first paper on Earth Theory in 1785, put forward "Prouteau Doctrine", and republished "Earth Theory" in 1795, systematically expounding his own views. This book laid the foundation for the creation of geology.

Since then, the debate between "Shuicheng theory" and "chaebol theory" has intensified. With people's more and more understanding of geological phenomena, by the beginning of the19th century, the "Water City Theory" was gradually abandoned, and the "God of Wealth Theory" won.

The representative of Catastrophic Theory is French scholar Ju Ye Wei (1769 ~ 1832). When he studied the biological fossils in the strata of the Paris basin, he found that there were significant differences in the species and genera of flora and fauna in the closely separated rock strata. The paleontological species that once appeared were completely extinct and replaced by new species. He also saw older rocks folded up and covered with horizontal sedimentary rocks. So he thought that great changes had taken place in the earth's crust, resulting in a worldwide catastrophe, which led to topographic changes and biological extinction, and later re-created new animals and plants in a certain period of time; The earth has experienced many such catastrophes and re-creation processes; The last catastrophe happened five or six thousand years ago, which created the present appearance and biological characteristics of the earth. Giant's catastrophe theory emphasizes the catastrophe stage in the process of geological development. Although it has a reasonable composition, he denied the gradual development of the earth and attributed the evolution history of the earth to a series of unknown emergencies unrelated to ancient and modern times. Ye Wei's repeated creations and unknowable views, especially the time of the last catastrophe, are consistent with the myths of "the Great Flood Period" and "Noah's Ark" discussed in the Bible, so they are welcomed by the church and widely circulated.

Contrary to the "catastrophe theory", it is the "uniformity theory" of biological evolution and geology. French scholar Lamarck (1744 ~ 1829) found that there is a transitional relationship between species, and some species developed from another species, and there is a law of evolution from lower species to higher species. He believes that the process of biological evolution is extremely long, and it is carried out at the same time as the evolutionary history of the earth. British geologist Lyle inherited Hutton's thought. After many arguments with catastrophe theory, on the basis of predecessors' achievements and a lot of practical data, he clearly put forward the principle of geological realism in the first volume of Geological Principles published in 1830, pointing out that the development history of the earth is long, and it is unnecessary to turn to God and catastrophe to explain the history of the earth. This is the main idea of equalization theory.

With the publication of Principles of Geology, the idea of "variational method" gradually replaced catastrophe theory, and the principle of realism became a basic principle of geological methodology. However, the "variation theory" emphasizes the "ancient and modern consistency" and gradual development, but it also ignores the one-sidedness of the rapid development stage (mutation) in the process of crustal development.

Lyle's Principles of Geology (three volumes) is an epoch-making work, which defines the concept of geological science, summarizes the research methods of geological science, initially establishes the system of geological science, and is the symbol of the establishment of geological science. Since then, geological science has entered a period of initial development and made great progress by the end of 19. In the study of crustal material composition, the method of studying rocks and minerals with microscope has been fully developed, and geochemical work has been gradually carried out.

In the study of the history of crustal evolution, a relatively perfect representative of relative geological years has been gradually established. On the basis of studying the orogenic belt in the eastern United States, North American scholars Hall and Dana put forward the "geosyncline" theory, which had a far-reaching impact on geological research. In the application of geology, mineral deposit science developed further and petroleum geology was born. Earthquake geology and engineering geology also began to develop gradually.

/kloc-in the 7th century, the German geographer Wallinhas (1622 ~ 1650) began to introduce Copernicus and Galileo's "sun-centered theory" and put forward the difference between thematic geography and general geography. The former describes specific fields, while the latter expounds general principles. From the end of 18 to the beginning of 19, Humboldt (1769 ~ 1859) and Ritter (1779 ~ 1859) laid the foundation of modern geography.

Humboldt's masterpiece is Universe: A Brief Introduction to the Nature of the World, which consists of five volumes. He first studied climate by calculating the average value of meteorological elements and put forward the concept of isotherm. 18 17, he drew the first annual average temperature distribution map of the world, and put forward the climate difference between the east and west ends of the mainland, maritime climate and continental climate types. He observed the vertical temperature drop of 0.6℃ when the terrain rises 100 m, studied the relationship between climate and plant distribution and types, and put forward the horizontal zonality of plant distribution in plain and the vertical zonality of plant distribution in mountain. He first studied the regularity of geographical phenomena by topographic profile and geographical comparison, and laid the general principles of physical geography, especially climatology and phytogeography.

Ritter studied the influence of geographical environment on human activities through the comprehensive comparison of geographical description and ground phenomena. He emphasized that geography should pay attention to the relationship between man and land and put forward the concept of comparative geography. 18/kloc-the first volume of Ritter's geography was published in 0/7, and 1859 * * * 19.

Since then, geography has been further developed. Latzer's "Geographical Environment Theory" and Hertner's "Geographical Methodology" are well-known scholars and schools of German geography. The more important school of geography in France is Vidal brandeis and Bruner's "Man-Land Correlation Theory". The famous geography theory in the United States is the "Geomorphological Erosion Cycle Theory" put forward by W.M.Davis (1899), which holds that the natural landscape of land is caused by erosion, and the surface morphology is continuous and staged, and it is a combination of the internal structure of the earth and external forces. He divided the development of rivers into youth, maturity and old age, and the rise of the earth's crust revived rivers. His theory laid the foundation of physical geography analysis.

(3) Revolution and all-round development of earth science (20th century to present)

Since the 20th century, it has been a new period for the development of modern earth science. During this period, a series of revolutions have taken place in traditional earth science, among which the revolution of solid earth science (including geology and geophysics) has the most far-reaching influence.

The revolution of solid earth science mainly revolves around the ideological revolution of activity theory and fixation theory in geotectonic theory. The traditional geological concept holds that the continent and the ocean only move vertically in their original positions, and their relative positions have not changed significantly, so it is called "fixation theory", with geosyncline and platform as its typical representatives. The "activity theory" holds that the mainland once had a long horizontal movement, and the relative position between the mainland and the ocean was constantly changing. The geotectonic theory representing "activity theory" is "continental drift-submarine expansion-plate tectonics theory" After nearly half a century of debate, by the end of 1960s, the theory of plate tectonics based on the research results of modern geology and geophysics had won a decisive victory, which promoted a profound revolution in the fields of geology and geophysics.

At the same time, with the progress of science and technology, geology has made unprecedented all-round development since the 20th century. High temperature and high pressure experimental technology, isotope geological dating technology, electronic computer, electron microscope, continental ultra-deep drilling and deep-sea drilling technology have greatly promoted the development of geology, and geology has gradually changed from qualitative description and analysis to semi-quantitative and quantitative analysis and research. Geophysical and geochemical methods have made great achievements in studying the material composition, structure and movement characteristics of the earth and crust, and become a powerful driving force for geological development. The application of space technology in geology has made great achievements, and the emerging astronomical geology based on space technology shows great vitality. These studies will play an important role in understanding the origin and evolution of the earth and solving many major geological problems.

The application of geology is the driving force to promote the development of geology. Since the 20th century, many new theories have been put forward, especially petroleum geology, in addition to the continuous development of traditional mineral deposit science. The research of hydrogeology, engineering geology and seismic geology has also developed rapidly. Especially since the mid-20th century, the importance of environmental geology research has attracted more and more attention and developed in depth.

Since the 20th century, there has also been an important revolution in geography, especially in research methods and means, which is usually called the metrological revolution of geography. In 1950s, geography began to use modern mathematical methods to analyze geographical problems. From 65438 to 0955, the Department of Geography of Washington University opened the first research class of applied mathematical statistics under the auspices of Garrison, which promoted the development of econometric geography. 1963, Burton put forward the slogan of "measurement revolution", which pushed this trend to Europe and the world. The essence of geographical metrology revolution is to use modern mathematical methods and computers, models and simulations to make geographical theory accurate and fast, and to transition from traditional qualitative analysis to the combination of qualitative and quantitative analysis. Since 1960s, driven by the metrological revolution, people have regarded the geographical environment and region as a system. Many new methods, such as computer, remote sensing and telemetry, have been applied to model and formulate the system and its interaction, and figures and images have been used to quantitatively express the human-land relationship and explain the regional differences and changes, so as to scientifically predict the evolution of the geographical environment and realize the optimization of the human-land relationship. This is the successful development and wide application of geographic information system. In this way, geography has developed from the previous phenomenon description to a new stage of scientific explanation and quantitative prediction. At the same time, due to the needs of society, a large number of branches of applied geography have emerged, such as engineering geography, environmental geography, resource geography, applied landscape science and so on.

Since the 20th century, the revolutionary changes in meteorology have become more prominent. In the first 50 years of the 20th century, meteorological observation began to develop from traditional ground observation to high altitude, mainly using high altitude observation tools such as kites and balloons, and the height reached was limited. Since 1950s, the observation system has been equipped with new technologies and means such as laser, radar and artificial earth satellite, which greatly promoted the development of meteorology. Large-scale comprehensive telemetry and remote sensing make the short-term disastrous weather forecast for several hours no longer a simple forecast problem, but a real tracking and real forecast. With the extensive use of computers, quantitative numerical simulation of atmospheric phenomena has become a reality. The progress of these studies has also greatly promoted the development of basic theories of meteorology.

Since the 20th century, the comprehensive and rapid development of earth science has also led to the birth of some new branches, such as geophysics, geochemistry, oceanography, environmental earth science, earth system science and so on. Oceanography and environmental geoscience are closely related to human life, survival and future development, so they are highly valued by scientists and the whole society and play an increasingly important role in geoscience. In the late 20th century, with the deepening of comprehensive and systematic research on earth science, the branch of earth system science gradually emerged and developed. Earth system science regards the earth as a unified composite system composed of multiple layers and circles, and emphasizes the comprehensive and holistic study of the past, present and future behavior of the whole earth system (including subsystems) from the viewpoint of system theory.

(4) the development prospect of earth science.

2 1 century will be an era of great changes in the development history of human society. Nowadays, the development of earth science is entering a major turning point in establishing a new knowledge system.

For a long time, the role of earth science in society is mainly to study the earth and guide the search for minerals, energy and various natural resources to ensure the demand for resources for human and social development; However, the application of natural environment is subordinate. The earth science knowledge system thus established can be summarized as a "resource-based" knowledge system. However, with the development of society, contemporary society is facing the challenges of population, resources, disasters and environment, which directly threaten the future social progress and human survival. Facing these challenges, geoscience should not only solve the problems of energy and minerals, but also help solve many major problems in today's social life: reducing natural and man-made disasters, finding and ensuring adequate and clean water sources, safely handling toxic, harmful and radioactive wastes, and providing geoscience knowledge and services for rational utilization of natural resources, comprehensive control of environmental pollution, protection of ecological environment, land improvement and agricultural development. All these will push earth science from the resource age to the environmental age and the comprehensive social application age. Therefore, its social function is required to be broadened from "resource-based" to "social". In line with this, the main tasks and objectives of earth science will also change accordingly. For example, in 1993, the National Research Council of the United States published a strategic report to guide the development of earth science in the United States, namely the report "Solid Earth Science and Society". The report clearly points out that the main tasks of solid earth science in the future are: ① to understand the processes involved in the global system, paying special attention to the relationship and interaction between the components of the earth system; ② Providing sufficient natural resources (water, minerals and fuel); ③ Mitigating geological disasters; ④ Regulating global and regional environmental changes. This report emphasizes that the goal of earth science research is to understand the past, present and future behavior of the whole earth system, thus ensuring the conditions for the sustainable development of human society.

The rise of earth system science is the result of the development of earth science adapting to the above new situation. Because the earth system science is closely combined with the study of the earth environment, resources, global change and the sustainable development of human beings, it represents the new research frontier and discipline growth point of earth science, so it has been highly concerned by the vast number of scientific workers and the whole society. At present, the key research contents involved in earth system science mainly include the interaction and dynamics of the earth system, global change, digital earth, the relationship between earth system science and human sustainable development, etc. Many important progress has been made in the research of earth system science, and it can be predicted that the depth, breadth and application prospect of its research will be immeasurable.

Of course, the earth system science cannot replace the research and development of various branches of traditional earth science. On the contrary, it requires them to study and provide a deeper and more accurate understanding of the characteristics and laws of various components of the earth system for systematic analysis and synthesis. Therefore, in a sense, the relationship between the earth system science and the branches of the earth science is the relationship between the whole and the part, and the whole and the part.

It can be seen from the above that the future earth science will become a science related to human survival and social development. The prospect of earth science is bright, and its position in social development and natural science will be further improved. Therefore, some scientists boldly predicted that "2 1 century will be the century of earth science".