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xkcd #3318: Earth Sized Planets (imgs.xkcd.com)
submitted 1 week ago by [B] to c/xkcd@lemmy.world
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xkcd #3318: Earth Sized Planets

Title text:

It probably has an icy mantle over the real silicate geology, but I'm hoping something weird happened to burn off most of the water like with Io.

Transcript:

Transcript will show once it’s been added to explainxkcd.com

Source: https://xkcd.com/3318/

explainxkcd for #3318

It probably has an icy mantle over the real silicate geology, but I'm hoping something weird happened to burn off most of the water like with Io.
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[–] 5 points 1 week ago (3 children)

Isn't that because it doesn't have a large moon constantly kneading the planet with tidal forces?

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  • [–] 6 points 1 week ago (2 children)

    That's my understanding. The moon is probably why we have plate tectonics, and plate tectonics is probably why our surface contains all the elements for life.

    So in other words, a relatively massive moon orbiting relatively close may be the secret to why there's life on earth. (Also, the planet needs to be not tidally locked to that moon)

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