Porter-Jinan CATALYST™ Program
How Things Used to Be
Earth is the third planet from its star, the Sun, and is assumed to be the only habitable planet in the solar system. It has both sentient and non-sentient creatures living on it. Its atmosphere is (approximately) 77% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and 2% various composites, which allows creatures living on it to breathe easily. The mean temperature of the planet is approximately 59 degrees Fahrenheit (15 degrees Celsius). About 71% of the entire surface of the planet is covered in water. A day (one revolution) on earth lasts 23.95 hours, and a year (one rotation) lasts 365.256 rotations.
Since 1992, the current sea level has been rising 3 millimeters a year, meaning it has risen 45 millimeters since then. Since the last Ice Age, the total sea level on Earth has risen around 130 meters (400 feet). The poles of the planet are home to multiple ice sheets, which hold a large portion of Earth’s frozen water. The 71% water that covers the planet is growing at a slow rate, though much of its reserve remains frozen.
The 2% of Earth’s atmosphere that is made up of various composites has several large portion-takers. Nearly 1% of the atmosphere is Argon (Ar). Approximately 0.04% of the atmosphere is made up of carbon dioxide which has entered through pollution and natural exhalation. Though only 1.5% of the land is covered by an urban area, those places are extreme producers of pollution output. Because plants take in carbon dioxide, the 32% of Earths atmosphere that is forest helps keep the number low, though the percentage [of forest] continues to shrink.
The human population of Earth numbers approximately 6.6 billion, and is growing at an exponential rate, regardless of the number who die every day. Humans are responsible for (through natural and artificial means) a very large percent of pollution (unnatural and potentially harmful substances). It is estimated that this percent will continually rise, at a rate just as high as that of the population.