A study of the metal iron will reveal many interesting facts. Scientists have discovered that iron could not have been formed by the sun, as it was originally thought. This is because the surface temperature of the sun is 6,000 degrees Celsius and the core temperature is around 15 to 16 million degrees Celsius. Although this might seem terribly hot to us, this temperature is not sufficient to produce the iron atom, which requires temperatures of about 20 million degrees.

 

Hence, scientists have concluded that iron can only be produced in stars much larger than the sun. The temperature on these stars can reach a few hundred million degrees. When the amount of iron exceeds a certain level in a star, the star can no longer accommodate it. It then explodes in what is called a nova or a supernova. The iron found on earth was a result of these events. Thousands of years ago, these explosions caused meteors containing iron to scatter around space until attracted by the gravitational force of earth.

 

 

Iron is one of the elements mentioned in the Quran: And We also sent down iron in which there lies great force and which has many uses for mankind... – Al-Hadeed, 57:25

 

When commentators analyse the word anzalna (translated into English as ‘sent down’), they have found that it could be taken on various levels. On the metaphorical level, this word could be taken as something that Allah has given as a gift. Hence, He has given us the element iron as a gift for mankind. On the literal level however, anzalna could be taken to mean physically sent down from the sky. What is interesting to observe is that the word has been used literally in other parts of the Quran, such as when Allah mentions ‘sending down’ rain. In this case, the Quran is actually hinting at an astronomical fact that was only discovered in modern times!

 

It is also remarkable that the Quran specifically mentions iron. In his book Nature’s Destiny, microbiologist Michael Denton emphasises why this metal is particularly important for life on earth:

 

“Of all the metals there is none more essential to life than iron. It is the accumulation of iron in the centre of a star which triggers a supernova explosion and the subsequent scattering of the vital atoms of life throughout the cosmos. It was the drawing by gravity of iron atoms to the center of the primeval earth that generated the heat which caused the initial chemical differentiation of the earth, the outgassing of the early atmosphere, and ultimately the formation of the hydrosphere. It is molten iron in the centre of the earth which, acting like a gigantic dynamo, generates the earth’s magnetic field, which in turn creates the Van Allen radiation belts that shield the earth’s surface from destructive high-energy-penetrating cosmic radiation and preserve the crucial ozone layer from cosmic ray destruction... Without the iron atom, there would be no carbon based life in the cosmos; no supernovae, no heating of the primitive earth, no atmosphere or hydrosphere. There would be no protective magnetic field, no Van Allen radiation belts, no ozone layer, no metal to make hemoglobin [in human blood], no metal to tame the reactivity of oxygen, and no oxidative metabolism. The intriguing and intimate relationship between life and iron, between the red colour of blood and the dying of some distant star, not only indicates the relevance of metals to biology but also the biocentricity of the cosmos...” - Michael J. Denton. Nature’s Destiny.The Free Press: 1998. p.198.

 

Allah’s knowledge is infinite. The science of the metal iron reveals the glory of God to those who reflect.

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3.20 Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved."