The importance of water for life

 March 22 marks world water day

Water is the most important element for life. It is of vital importance for the human being, as well as for the rest of animals and living beings that accompany us on planet Earth.

It is curious that 70 percent of the Earth is water and that 70 percent of our body is also water. Perhaps that is why it is advisable to have a healthy diet and a long life to eat foods with a percentage of 70 percent in water.

Human beings need a lot of drinking water for their own existence, but just a few liters of water would be necessary, just enough to drink, hydrate and wash, water the plants ... etc. "

But on the other hand, the human being tends to abuse this rich element to the detriment of his own species and to the detriment of his own existence, as well as that of the rest of the inhabitants of the Earth. It is said that humans may need up to 500 liters of drinking water per day, which is extremely wasteful. Hence, we are giving so much importance to water for the development of life on the planet.

Water is not only important as a vital resource but also as an economic and industrial resource, since it is used in countless industrial activities, involves high consumption and is almost always contaminated.

Let's see why water is so important to life. Outside the sea, drinking water is just 1 percent of all existing water, the remaining 96 percent is salty water found in the seas, and the missing three percent is water found in the seas. ice-shaped poles.

And although it seems that it rains often and that we have free and unlimited water, it is the opposite. The land is getting hotter, desertification is growing in areas that previously had rivers and swamps, and the inability to cultivate and irrigate the land is becoming the main problem of hunger worldwide.

Saving water is of the utmost importance. It is enough to fill the washing machine more, use regulators in the taps, put a brick or a full bottle in the cistern, shower instead of bathing or shaving or brushing our teeth with the tap turned off. All these attitudes can save us thousands of liters of water per day ”.

Water. It is found everywhere on Earth, from the polar caps to steaming geysers. And where the water flows on this planet, you can be sure of finding life. "

“When we find water here on Earth - whether it's ice-covered lakes, whether it's deep-sea hydrothermal vents, whether it's arid deserts - if there's any water, we've seen microbes that have found a way to do it. a home there, "said Brian Glazer, an oceanographer at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, who has studied astrobiology.

That is why NASA's motto in the search for extraterrestrial life has been "follow the water."

But why is water such a crucial molecule for life? And could there be other ingredients that also provide the perfect recipe for life on other planets?

Life that flows

Ultimately, all life on Earth uses a membrane that separates the organism from its environment. To stay alive, the body takes important materials for assimilating energy, while expelling all toxic substances such as waste products.

In this sense, water is essential simply because it is a liquid at temperatures similar to Earth. Because it flows, water provides an efficient solution for transferring substances from a cell to the cell's environment. By contrast, getting energy from a solid is a much more difficult prospect (although there are microbes that feed on rock), Glazer said.

The water molecule is made up of two hydrogen atoms bonded to one oxygen atom.

The humble water molecule is made up of two hydrogen atoms bonded to one oxygen atom. Which is summarized in the well-known chemical formula H2O.

"The way they are bonded together makes water this wonderful universal solvent," which means that almost every substance dissolves in water, Glazer said.

Phases of water

Another characteristic of water is that it can act as a solid, liquid and gas within the range of temperatures that occur on Earth. Other molecules that have been identified as good candidates for life support tend to be liquid at temperatures or pressures that would be inhospitable to more known life forms, Glazer said.

"The water is really in that sweet spot," Glazer said.

The fact that water can be in all three phases in a relatively narrow range of pressures creates many opportunities for life to flourish, he added.

"The three states of the water available on our planet create this very well-tended variety of habitats and microclimates," Glazer said.

For example, frozen ice can be found in glaciers sliding through mountains, while water vapor helps warm the environment, Glazer said.

Watery cradle of life

Of course, while water is critical to life on our planet, there could be life forms that do not conform to the Earth ecosystem.

The figures attract attention by themselves, but it takes days such as World Water Day, which the United Nations calls every year, for them to emerge among others that account for the great world problems and capture the attention of citizens. 2.1 billion people around the world do not have access to drinking water that has been safely treated. And the demand for true liquid gold will grow by up to 30% between now and 2050, at the same rate that the population will grow: 2 billion more people will set foot on Earth in that time. And nearly two out of every five humans will be exposed to the devastation of floods.

Therefore, let us make responsible use of the liquid gold of humanity which is water. Saving water is saving the planet. It is in your hands that future generations continue to make sustainable use of a natural resource as important to life as water ”.