Australia's National
Prison Newspaper

Australia's National
Prison Newspaper

Welcome to About Time

About Time is the national newspaper for Australian prisons and detention facilities

Your browser window currently does not have enough height, or is zoomed in too far to view our website content correctly. Once the window reaches the minimum required height or zoom percentage, the content will display automatically.

Alternatively, you can learn more via the links below.

Donations via GiveNow

Email

Instagram

LinkedIn

ISSUE NO. 13

August 2025

Donate Here

Learn

Our Living Planet: Wild Facts About Earth

By

These facts were drawn from and inspired by “Bits & Pieces”, a long running newsletter to fellows at St John’s, the hospital section of Port Phillip Prison in Victoria

Font Size
Font Size
Line Height
Line Height
Dyslexia Friendly
Black & White
Hide Images
Night Mode

Is the Earth one big living thing?

There is a theory that Earth, including everything that makes it up, is one living organism.

This is known as the “Gaia Theory” and was popularised by a British scientist, James Lovelock.

If you think of the human body as composed of many millions of different living parts but all working as ONE body, the theory is that everything that goes to make up Earth (minerals, air, water, plants, animals etc) all work together as one huge interdependent living thing!

And like a living thing it heals itself (after earthquakes and diseases etc) like sores in the body heal… interesting theory!!

Was Earth once purple?

Today, Earth looks blue and green – with oceans, forests and plants. But, billions of years ago, Earth may have looked purple!

Back then, there were no plants. Instead, tiny life forms called microbes lived in the oceans. Some scientists think these early microbes used a purple chemical called retinal to get energy from sunlight.

Retinal reflects red and blue light, which mix to look purple. So, if lots of these microbes lived in the oceans, Earth may have looked purple from space!

Later, new microbes appeared that used chlorophyll – the green chemical plants use today. Chlorophyll works better than retinal, so green microbes took over. That’s when Earth began to look like it does now – blue and green.

This idea is still being studied, but it shows how even tiny life can change a whole planet!

Did Earth’s water come from space?

Earth has lots of water now – oceans, lakes and rain. But 4.5 billion years ago, Earth was hot and dry. So where did all the water come from?

Scientists have two main ideas:

  1. From inside Earth itself: When Earth formed, some water was trapped deep underground. Later, volcanoes let out steam and gases. The steam turned into rain and helped fill the oceans.
  2. From space: A long time ago, Earth was hit by comets and asteroids. Some of these space rocks had ice or watery minerals. When they crashed, they may have brought water to Earth.

Most scientists think both ideas are true: Some water came from inside Earth, and some came from space.

Fun fact: Water has also been found on the Moon, Mars and even some asteroids!

A mountain made of salt?

Yes – in southern Iran, there’s a huge mountain made of salt! It’s called a salt dome.

Here’s how it formed:

Millions of years ago, this area was covered by the ocean. When the ocean dried up, it left thick layers of salt. Over time, rock and dirt pressed down on the salt.

Salt is softer and lighter than most rocks. So, instead of staying flat underground, the salt slowly pushed upward – like toothpaste from a tube! That created a dome-shaped mountain under the ground. In some places, the salt even breaks through the surface.

One of the most famous salt domes is in the Zagros Mountains in Iran. It’s so big, you can see it from space! Some of the salt even moves slowly like a glacier.

Salt domes are not just cool – they help scientists learn about Earth’s history. Sometimes they even trap oil and gas, which people use for energy.

Amazing, right? All that from simple salt!

Is the Earth one big living thing?

There is a theory that Earth, including everything that makes it up, is one living organism.

This is known as the “Gaia Theory” and was popularised by a British scientist, James Lovelock.

If you think of the human body as composed of many millions of different living parts but all working as ONE body, the theory is that everything that goes to make up Earth (minerals, air, water, plants, animals etc) all work together as one huge interdependent living thing!

And like a living thing it heals itself (after earthquakes and diseases etc) like sores in the body heal… interesting theory!!

Was Earth once purple?

Today, Earth looks blue and green – with oceans, forests and plants. But, billions of years ago, Earth may have looked purple!

Back then, there were no plants. Instead, tiny life forms called microbes lived in the oceans. Some scientists think these early microbes used a purple chemical called retinal to get energy from sunlight.

Retinal reflects red and blue light, which mix to look purple. So, if lots of these microbes lived in the oceans, Earth may have looked purple from space!

Later, new microbes appeared that used chlorophyll – the green chemical plants use today. Chlorophyll works better than retinal, so green microbes took over. That’s when Earth began to look like it does now – blue and green.

This idea is still being studied, but it shows how even tiny life can change a whole planet!

Did Earth’s water come from space?

Earth has lots of water now – oceans, lakes and rain. But 4.5 billion years ago, Earth was hot and dry. So where did all the water come from?

Scientists have two main ideas:

  1. From inside Earth itself: When Earth formed, some water was trapped deep underground. Later, volcanoes let out steam and gases. The steam turned into rain and helped fill the oceans.
  2. From space: A long time ago, Earth was hit by comets and asteroids. Some of these space rocks had ice or watery minerals. When they crashed, they may have brought water to Earth.

Most scientists think both ideas are true: Some water came from inside Earth, and some came from space.

Fun fact: Water has also been found on the Moon, Mars and even some asteroids!

A mountain made of salt?

Yes – in southern Iran, there’s a huge mountain made of salt! It’s called a salt dome.

Here’s how it formed:

Millions of years ago, this area was covered by the ocean. When the ocean dried up, it left thick layers of salt. Over time, rock and dirt pressed down on the salt.

Salt is softer and lighter than most rocks. So, instead of staying flat underground, the salt slowly pushed upward – like toothpaste from a tube! That created a dome-shaped mountain under the ground. In some places, the salt even breaks through the surface.

One of the most famous salt domes is in the Zagros Mountains in Iran. It’s so big, you can see it from space! Some of the salt even moves slowly like a glacier.

Salt domes are not just cool – they help scientists learn about Earth’s history. Sometimes they even trap oil and gas, which people use for energy.

Amazing, right? All that from simple salt!

Leave a Comment

Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
0 Comments
Author Name
Comment Time

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere. uis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.

Intro to Criminology

By Benjamin Aitken

Criminology is more than just the study of crime; it's about understanding the system that controls crime, how it works, who it benefits, and why it sometimes goes wrong.

Learn

ISSUE NO. 9

6 MIN READ

Gardening, for Those With and Without

By Dan Nathan

If you’ve experienced gardening, you’re likely well acquainted with the mental health benefits of getting your hands dirty.

Learn

ISSUE NO. 8

5 MIN READ

Critical Thinking & the Art of Persuasion – Forceful Arguments

By Daniel Vansetten

In this series, we showed that arguments are attempts to persuade people to act or believe something. The strongest arguments are sound arguments.

Learn

ISSUE NO. 7

6 MIN READ

Did You Know?

By Word Magazine

Tokyo now has fifty per cent more inhabitants than the entirety of Australia, and there are more seventeen year-olds in India than there are people in Australia.

Learn

ISSUE NO. 6

2 MIN READ

Get the full paper in print each month.

6-Month Subscription:

Physical copy of About Time delivered to your home or organisation each month for six months. Paid upfront.

Subscribe for $70

12-Month Subscription:

Physical copy of About Time delivered to your home or organisation each month for twelve months. Paid upfront.

Subscribe for $125

Newsletter

Be the first to learn about our monthly stories, plus new initiatives and live events

You've successfully registered!
Something went wrong when we tried to register your details. Please try again.

Support Australia's first national prison newspaper

A place for news and education, expression and hope.

Help keep the momentum going. All donations are tax deductible and will be vital in providing an essential resource for people in prison and their loved ones.

It's
About Time.

A place for news and education, expression and hope.

Help us get About Time off the ground. All donations are tax deductible and will be vital in providing an essential resource for people in prison and their loved ones.

Donate Here