Scientific Vision of Earth's Sphericity

Scientific Vision of Earth's Sphericity

Introduction

Astronomy is one of the oldest cosmic and natural sciences, established to explore the movements of orbits, celestial bodies, and provide a scientifically accurate understanding of the universe and its contents such as stars, planets, moons, and suns. This science evolved from the ancient Greeks through various civilizations, all agreeing over different epochs on the Earth's sphericity. This was documented by the Islamic civilization, one of the greatest civilizations in which astronomy flourished under Arab and Muslim scientists. They used celestial movements to serve Islamic law, created calendars, and understood the cosmic nature of orbits and trajectories. Modern sciences were influenced by this civilization, and astronomy evolved with advancements in observation techniques and tools, becoming essential for sky observation. Scientific evidence and academic research have widely demonstrated that the Earth is not flat but spherical. Some of this evidence includes:

• Visual Observations: This becomes apparent when observing ships gradually disappearing as they move away from the horizon due to the Earth's curvature, not because they are moving to the edge or surface of the Earth. Also, observing eclipses shows that the shadow area is distributed across the Earth's surface, with eclipse and shadow spots varying between countries, appearing total in one place and partial in another. Additionally, differences in night and day, and time zone changes when traveling by plane, are visual proofs comprehensible to humans.

• Space Missions and Earth Imaging from Space: Photos taken by satellites and space missions show the Earth as a sphere, and astronauts' rotation around the Earth, along with the trajectories of both Earth-synchronous and sun-synchronous satellites, support this view.

• Astrophysics and Celestial Mechanics: The laws of gravity, motion of objects, their orbits, and stability align with the Earth's sphericity.

Thus, based on multiple scientific evidences, it can be said that the Earth is spherical, further supported by Quranic verses and signs such as in His words:

Scientific Interpretation and Textual Indication

Science has established that the Earth's rotation around its axis is observable through the sun rising in the east and setting in the west. The Earth's axis is the line passing through its center, around which it rotates every 24 hours. The poles are its extremities, and the equator divides it into northern and southern hemispheres. Science has also proven that the Earth's rotation around its axis and around the sun do not occur on the same plane. If they were on the same plane, the equator would face the sun all year, and the entire year would be a single season.

Interpretations of Quranic verses that support the concept of the Earth's sphericity have been studied by scholars over the ages. Several interpretations include:

• Ibn Kathir's exegesis points to verses indicating the wrapping of night over day and vice versa, suggesting the Earth's rotation around itself.

• Al-Tabari indicated the Earth's rotation around its axis, causing the alternation of night and day.

• Al-Razi mentioned that the term "wrap" in the verse means "to coil," implying the Earth's rotation around itself.

The Miraculous Aspect:

The Quran's verses explicitly mention the alternation of night and day, considering them as results of the sunrise and sunset. The verses refer to a realistic phenomenon without any disagreement, along with the differences in the celestial observations. Allah created the heavens stationary, with stars swimming and moving in a precise manner without increase or decrease, touching the surrounding air or the medium they are in. Therefore, the sphericity of the Earth is considered a scientific fact hinted at in the Quran before modern science discovered it. Some consider these hints to represent a scientific miracle in the Quran.

And Allah knows best.