How old is the earth?

Answer 1

By using the amount of salt in the ocean, I can prove that the earth is not billions of years old.

Ocean water is salty because salt is too heavy to evaporate. Salt gets into the ocean through surface runoff into the ocean. This is when water runs over the ground and into a water source. Since the water runs over rocks and dirt, minerals get mixed in with the water, and end up in the ocean. These minerals are the salts in the ocean. Oceans have high residency times, and no outlets, so salt accumulates there.

The hydrologic cycle has been studied enough for us to know how much salt is put into the ocean every year. In addition, we have a pretty good idea of how much salt is removed form the ocean every year. In the end, then , we can actually "add up" the amount of salt is going into the ocean and "add up" how much salt is being removed. As you might expect, this inventory leads us to the conclusion that more salt is going into the oceans than than what is being removed. In the end, then, the oceans are getting saltier and saltier. Suppose we assume that the oceans originally had absolutely no salt in them, and that all of the salt in them today came from the hydrologic cycle. Well, based in the inventory that scientists have done, you can actually determine how long it would take for freshwater oceans to become as salty as they are now. The most careful estimates indicate that it would take just over 1 million years to go from freshwater oceans to oceans with the salinity that we see today.

What does this tell us about the age of the earth? Well, first of all, it makes it awfully hard to believe that th earth is billions of years old. After all, if it really were billions of years old, then why aren't the ocean a lot saltier than they are now?

Secondly, the times that one calculates this are, in fact, only upper limits to the real age of the earth. If you believe in creation, then you know that God certainly created the oceans with salt in them, since organisms in the ocean are designed to live with salt (to make shells, etc...). Thus, the assumption that the oceans were completely freshwater is pretty silly. Also, careful analysis of the hydrologic cycle tells us that the rate of salt being dumped into the ocean most likely decreases as time goes on. As a result, the rate at which we measure now is probably lower than what it was a few thousand years ago. Thus the salinity of the oceans really tells us that the earth is significantly younger than 1 million years old.

It would be nice if the other people that answered this question would give their evidence or proof for their point of view instead of just saying a number.

Whew...my hands are tired from typing. =)

Answer 2

The generally accepted age for the Earth and the rest of the solar system is about 4.55 billion years (plus or minus 45.5 Million Years). This value is derived from several different lines of evidence. Enclosed is a website that will explain the sources of evidence.
On the other side of the coin the creationist place the age of the earth at about 6,000 years old, i do not adhere to that school but in all fairness I feel that all should be exposed to both theories and allowed to make up their own mind,

Answer 3

The oldest writing I know about is from the babylon area about the time Moses was in Egypt. According to the biblical story the flood predates that so there wouldn't be a break in it. Plus almost every culture and civilization has an account of a great flood in it's past.

Answer 4

It depends on whether you say God created the Earth and implanted the evidence for age
If God did, then pick any date you want, 1942, 4004 BC, etc.
The evidence suggests 4.5 Billion years

Answer 5

Some of the others are wrong, some are close but to be precise it is 4.57 billion years old. I'm 100% sure.
I'm a geology major.

Answer 6

Incognito is wrong.
The Earth is 4.55 Billion Years old.

Answer 7

4,467,893,723 years 134 days 5 hours, 22 minutes and counting

Answer 8

This is disputed. Science says it is 4.6 billion years old. Jews say it is about 5500 years old.

Answer 9

4.5 billion years

Answer 10

4.554 billion years old