'''Thomas Gold''' (
May 22, 1920 –
June 22, 2004) was an
Austrian astrophysicist, a professor of
astronomy at
Cornell University, and a member of the US
National Academy of Sciences. Gold was one of three young
Cambridge scientists who advanced the scientific understanding of
cosmology in the 1950s by proposing the controversial
steady state hypothesis of the
universe. Gold had the unusual ability to cross academic and scientific boundaries, into
biophysics,
astrophysics,
space engineering, or
geophysics, to challenge longstanding
dogma with his profound insights.
Life
Originally from Vienna, Austria, he was educated at Zuoz College in
Switzerland and
Trinity College, Cambridge. At the start of
World War II, he endured
internment as an enemy alien, when he met
Hermann Bondi. Once released, he worked with Bondi and
Fred Hoyle (near
Dunsfold in
Surrey) on
radar, a partnership which would extend into astrophysics. Together, the three upset existing dogma with their unorthodox theories on the nature of the
cosmos. He later worked at the
Royal Greenwich Observatory, in
Greenwich,
England, and at
Harvard University, in
Cambridge, Massachusetts.
He was married twice: to Merle Tuberg in 1947 and to Carvel Beyer in 1972. He had three daughters by his first wife and one by his second. He died at the age of 84.
Astrophysics
Gold carried out research on
cosmology and on
magnetic fields, and coined the term
magnetosphere for the Earth's magnetic fields. Along with Bondi, he developed the
steady-state theory. Soon after the discovery of
pulsars in 1968, he correctly identified these objects as rapidly rotating
neutron stars with strong
magnetic fields.
For a number of years, Gold promoted the idea a thick layer of dust would cover many portions of the surface of the
Moon. His opinion influenced the design of the
American Surveyor lunar landing probes, but their precautions appeared excessive, as Gold had overestimated the extent to which cyclic thermal expansion and contraction would pulverize lunar surface rock.
He won the
Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society in 1985.
Origins of petroleum
Gold achieved fame for his 1992 paper "The Deep Hot Biosphere" in the
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, which presented a controversial view of the origin of
coal,
oil, and
gas deposits, a theory of an
abiogenic petroleum origin. The theory suggests coal and crude oil deposits have their origins in
natural gas flows which feed
bacteria living at extreme depths under the surface of the Earth; in other words, oil and coal are produced through tectonic forces, rather than from the decomposition of fossils. Gold also published a book of the same title in 1999, which expanded on the arguments in his 1992 paper and included speculations on the
origin of life.
According to Gold and
Russian scientific forebears, bacteria feeding on the oil accounts for the presence of biological debris in
hydrocarbon fuels, obviating the need to resort to a biogenic theory for the origin of the latter. The flows of underground
hydrocarbons may also explain oddities in the concentration of other mineral deposits.
Most
western geologists and
petrologists consider petroleum abiogenic theories implausible and believe the biogenic theory of
fossil fuel formation adequately explains all observed fossil fuel deposits. Most geologists do recognize the geologic
carbon cycle includes subducted carbon which returns to the surface, with studies showing the carbon does rise in various ways.
Gold and geology experts point out the biogenic theories do not explain phenomena such as
helium in oil fields and oil fields associated with deep geologic features.
However, recent discoveries have shown that bacteria live at depths far greater than previously believed. Whilst this does not prove Gold's theory, it certainly lends support to its arguments.
A
thermal depolymerization process which converts animal waste to carbon fuels does show some processes can be done without bacterial action, but does not explain details of natural oil deposits such as
magnetite production.
See Also
References
External links
- AAPG.org - Gas Origin Theories to be Studied (abiogenic gas debate), David Brown, Explorer (November, 2002)
- Cornell.edu - Thomas Gold homepage (last updated October, 2000)
- Cornell.edu - The Deep Hot Biosphere (scientific paper), Thomas Gold, (July, 1992)
- GasResources.net - Dismissal of the Claims of a Biological Connection for Natural Petroleum, J. F. Kenney, Ac. Ye. F. Shnyukov, V. A. Krayushkin, I. K. Karpov, V. G. Kutcherov, I. N. Plotnikova, Energia, Vol 22, No 3, pp 26-34, 2001
- Guardian.co.uk - Thomas Gold: The science maverick who challenged establishment thinking - and quite often turned out to be right (obituary), Anthony Tucker, The Guardian (June 24, 2004)
- Nature.com - Goldmine yields clues for life on Mars (report on discovery of bacteria found living on hydrogen gas 3.5km below the Earth's surface), Nature
- NSF.gov - Hot Stuff: Iron-Reducing Archaeon Respires to Greatness: From the depths, microbe "Strain 121" takes life to its hottest known limits (about deep hot bacteria producing magnetite), National Science Foundation (August 14, 2003 press release)
- SPE.org - Unconventional Ideas About Unconventional Gas, Walter Rose, Hans Olaf Pfannkuch, Society of Petroleum Engineers Unconventional Gas Recovery Symposium (May 16-18, 1982)
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