Article How plate tectonics shook life into existence

[C C]

https://bigthink.com/hard-science/plate-...nto-being/

EXCERPTS: Life on this planet has a lot going for it. The Earth is not too hot, nor is it too cold. We have just enough carbon dioxide in our atmosphere to prevent a runaway greenhouse effect. We have plentiful water, yet enough land for an array of lifeforms to make a home here. We have a magnetic field that protects us from harmful cosmic radiation. And we have a chemical mix that is ideal for life.

Yet an often overlooked trait of our planet is plate tectonics, and we might owe our existence to it. Without earthquakes and volcanoes, without the puzzle pieces of the Earth’s crust constantly shifting around, being destroyed, and reforming, life on this planet might not exist at all.

Life needs movement. Nutrients have to travel where they are needed. Elements and molecules need to wander, change forms, and react with each other. Life would have a hard time gaining a foothold on a stagnant planet. On Earth, carbon is the basic building block of life...

[...] Plate tectonics is a vital part of this carbon cycle. Volcanism releases carbon dioxide directly into the atmosphere. Water pulls the carbon dioxide from the air, forming carbonic acid, which when combined with calcium forms limestone. Plate tectonics recycles the crust of the Earth, including the limestone. As it pulls the crust back into the mantle, it removes carbon from the surface of the Earth. This creates a delicate balance. The planet needs enough carbon dioxide to stay warm. Too much, though, would create a runaway greenhouse effect, as probably happened on Venus.

Plate tectonics is also involved in the water cycle..... (MORE - missing details)

[Magical Realist]

Plate tectonics recycles the crust of the Earth, including the limestone. As it pulls the crust back into the mantle, it removes carbon from the surface of the Earth. This creates a delicate balance. The planet needs enough carbon dioxide to stay warm. Too much, though, would create a runaway greenhouse effect, as probably happened on Venus.

Life on the vast and diverse collective level from bacteria and fungi to sharks and sequoias and bipedal hominids is amazingly cyclic and self-organizing. It changes the character of the environment, even on a global level, to one that enables life to continue flourishing and evolving. It almost seems like it is intelligent and purpose-driven. I stand in awe of the great polymorphic entity we call Life-- we the lucky heirs to its manifold treasures and precious gifts.