Professor Gold and the A-biogenic Theory of Hydrocarbon Formation
The first time I heard of Professor Gold was in 1975. Gold was founding director for the Cornell University Center for Radiophysics and Space Research. He was chairman of Cornell's Department of Astronomy. He has Bachelor's degrees, Master's degrees, Ph.D.'s from Cambridge to Harvard to Cornell . He is currently a member of just about every science group from the National Academy of Sciences to the Royal Society of London. He has published nearly 300 papers on everything from neutron stars to radar to cosmology. Gold's lifelong work in the laboratory has kept him far too busy for the television and political sound-bite games of so-called environmentalism!
But what does astronomy have to do with hydrocarbons? The answer involves the a-biogenic theory of hydrocarbon formation. Unlike the "fossil fuels" fantasy which supposedly began in prehistoric times, the a-biogenic theory goes back to the planetary formation of Earth, over 4.5 billion years ago; long before life or fossils existed!
From Scientific Theory to Practical Applications
In December 1983 the Wall Street Journal interviewed Gold for the article 'Astronomer Believes Oil, Gas Deposits as Old as the Earth.' This was followed by another, 'What If Methane is Inexhaustible?' (Methane is the primary component of natural gas.).
At the time of these articles I was employed in the Ford Powertrain Planning group. I was assigned to engine/transmission production, Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE), and emissions compliance; to name a few. In 1984 I moved to Chrysler. By 1987 I was an Engineering Manager, responsible for products such as the Dodge-Cummins diesel pickup.
When I transferred to the minivan group in 1991 they were struggling with the more stringent Clean Air Act, especially in California. Since a majority of Chrysler sales in California are the minivan, it was effectively targeted by Sacramento's new rules. I wrote a paper summarizing the emissions issues, including the necessity of natural gas as a minivan fuel. I later called the initial meetings which raised management awareness of the specific issues. My meetings led to development of Chrysler's natural gas minivan. Prior to this time, no such product or plans existed.
The personal context of my efforts on the natural gas minivan was my concern for the environment. But the scientific context was my knowledge of Gold's work on the a-biogenic origins of hydrocarbons, especially their abundance. Much of this knowledge came from his 1987 book "Power From the Earth."
From Astrophysics to Automobiles
Gold's new book, "The Deep Hot Biosphere" is a culmination of over 50 years of his life. It is extremely comprehensive. Admittedly it takes enormous effort to overcome the old "fossil fuel" thinking, which has been promoted by politicians and their media friends. But once you understand Gold's concepts, you'll have a renewed suspicion of our politicians, and disappointment with the science community. With a basis in astrophysics, "The Deep Hot Biosphere" will have implications from environmental policy, to the geopolitics of oil, to the automobile industry.
Chapter 3 is called "The Deep-Earth Gas Theory." It discusses the fact that hydrocarbons have been in existence since the earliest times of the universe. They are part of the process of planetary formation. Their constituents, hydrogen and carbon, originated in the primordial soup from which Planet Earth was formed.
Gold explains that you will find hydrocarbon sources at great depths below the surface; not a few miles, but a few hundred miles! The deep-earth sources of hydrocarbons are still at it to this day, pumping tons of methane gas and petroleum up through the Earth to the shallow sedimentary levels. It is here that drilling rigs access the upwelling that has been vertically dammed into petroleum reservoirs. Hydrocarbons did not come from rotting plants- hydrocarbons were here a few billion years before life occurred.
Chapter 3 summarizes five fundamental assumptions regarding the deep-earth, a-biogenic sourcing of hydrocarbons. All five are supported by currently accepted science. Gold also discusses the latest space research information; much of which he discovered or proposed. Chapter 3 reminds us that hydrocarbons are present on lifeless heavenly bodies such as moons, asteroids, and comets. They are also found on the "Gas Giants' such as Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. In fact, the blue coloration of planet Uranus is due to methane, a so-called "fossil fuel.' Gold explains,
"I am sure there are no big stagnant swamps on Titan or Pluto."