Laplace’s Nebular Hypothesis
- The renowned mathematician Laplace revised Kant’s theory in 1976 with his Nebular Hypothesis.
- Laplace proposed that a solar nebula, primarily composed of hydrogen, helium, and dust, surrounded the sun.
- He suggested that the formation of disk-shaped clouds occurred due to the impact and friction of celestial particles.
- According to Laplace, the planets formed in association with the newly formed star, the sun, through a process of accretion of these celestial particles.
- However, Laplace’s hypothesis faced criticism as it did not explain the origin of the nebula itself.
- Additionally, it couldn’t determine the source of the nebula or the primary source of its heat and motion.
Early Theories of the Earth| Class 11 Geography Notes
Early Theories of the Earth: The Earth and other planets in our solar system formed due to the pull of gravity. About 4.63 billion years ago, the solar system was a cloud of gas and dust called a “Nebula.” In this discussion, we’ll explore early theories about Earth’s origin, including Kant’s “Gaseous Hypothesis”, Laplace’s “Nebular Hypothesis” and also Chamberlin’s “Planetesimal Hypothesis” in this article. These notes are specially curated by an expert team at w3wiki for all the students for their better understanding and to help them in their examinations.