chlorophyll Archives - DOES GOD EXIST? TODAY

October 11, 2024October 9, 2024

The Beauty of Fall Colors

Fall is my favorite time of year. It is fascinating to watch the wildlife preparing for winter while the biting and stinging insects are suppressed and the night sky is delightfully clear. Here in Michigan, the coming of fall is heralded by a constant flow of colors. We begin with brilliant red sumac followed by crimson poison ivy wrapping itself around the still-green oaks and maples. As fall progresses, the maples and other species gradually change their colors, then the leaves begin to fall, and frost starts showing up. The beauty of fall colors in Michigan is astounding.

From a scientific perspective, we know how this system works. The chemical that gives green color to plants in the summer is chlorophyll-A. Chlorophyll allows plants to absorb energy mainly in the red and blue parts of the spectrum but very little in the green. Green is the highest energy of sunlight reaching Earth’s surface, and the leaves reflect green, preventing them from being burned by the summer sunlight. As the Sun’s angle becomes less, the green wavelengths are refracted away from Earth’s surface, reducing the chloroplasts in plant cells. In short, that means the chlorophyll is gone, and the green color goes away. We see the beauty of fall colors in the true colors of the leaves. Since each plant has a different chemical makeup in its leaves, each has its own color.

The chemistry of chlorophyll is highly complex, but the bottom line is that in the fall, chlorophyll no longer gives leaves their green color. Why is the system designed like this? Why is sumac different from hard maples, which are different from sugar maples, which are different from oaks? It seems that one chemical formula would work for all plants, making such a complex system unnecessary.

As I sit here writing this and admiring the beauty of fall colors, it seems that in spite of my science background, I feel I am looking at a wonderful painting by an artist applying a palette of colors with an eye for beauty. “Survival of the fittest” does not explain beauty and color, especially when other alternatives are available. It is also essential to understand that seeing the beautiful color of fall is something our eyes are designed to do.

Most animals do not see color and those that do use color as a survival device. Human eyes are designed to perceive color, and we are designed to appreciate and enjoy beauty. Take time to look for the colors around you, and know that they speak of God’s handiwork to bring something good into our lives.

October 23, 2023October 22, 2023

Incredible Color in Birds and Trees

One of the great mysteries of living things is the presence of beauty. If your faith is “survival of the fittest,” you have no explanation for beauty. Things in the natural world often radiate incredible beauty that has no survival benefit or even threatens survival. The incredible color in birds and trees provides a classic example. Some birds have gorgeous colors that can make them vulnerable to predators.

Here in Michigan, we are witnessing another example of beauty with no survival value but seems designed for humans to enjoy. The green color we see in plants is due to chlorophyll, which allows plants to use photosynthesis. There are two kinds of chlorophyll molecules called chlorophyll A and chlorophyll B. Chlorophyll A absorbs blue light, and chlorophyll B absorbs red light. Green light is the highest energy of sunlight reaching Earth’s surface. Plants are green because the green light radiation is reflected away to protect the plants. In the fall of the year, the chlorophyll in the leaves is removed, and we see the remaining colors.

These facts explain why trees are green and the wisdom in the green color of chlorophyll. But why do the leaves have different colors when the chlorophyll is removed? In our area, the first fall colors that appear are the reds of sumac and poison ivy. Depending on the variety, maple trees have various colors of red, orange, and yellow. We also have multiple birch tree varieties, each with different fall colors.

Why should there be different colors we can’t see until the chlorophyll is gone? The chemistry that creates these colors is very complex. From an evolutionary view, all trees would have the one pigment that advances survival, but that is not the case. The picture gets even more complicated when we consider plants that never see sunlight, such as ferns and various grasses.

As we enjoy the incredible color in birds and trees, we can see beauty for the spiritual value it offers and the joy it brings. That is because we are created in the image of God, the creator of beauty.

For a detailed discussion of chlorophyll, see Wikipedia.

April 20, 2023April 20, 2023

Spring Green Testifies of God

I have been admiring the beautiful colors of the blossoms on our fruit trees and the flowering dogwoods. Spring brings new life to the natural world. Everything changes daily as the bulb plants wake up and emerge from the ground. Yet, even with all the beautiful colors, I enjoy spring green.

Green is a very relaxing color. The new leaves on the trees transform them from ghost-like stalks to luxurious, living umbrellas ready to provide shade from the summer heat. But, have you ever noticed that the green of tree leaves seems more vibrant in the spring than in summertime? There is a reason for that. It isn’t just your imagination.

Leaves are green because of the chlorophyll they contain. That amazing chemical makes it possible for plants to take energy from the Sun, moisture from the ground, and carbon dioxide from the air to make sugars that power their growth. We call that extremely complex process photosynthesis, and we have discussed that before on this website. The chlorophyll is contained in chloroplasts in the leaves. The chloroplasts absorb light, but they use more of the higher energy blue and red wavelengths and reflect much of the green. When we see spring green leaves, they contain fewer chloroplasts, so they absorb less light, making the green leaves appear bright and vibrant.

Chloroplasts multiply as the season wears on, so the leaves absorb more light. Also, the cuticles, or outer layer of the leaves, and the cell walls in the leaves become thicker. Those factors, which are part of the leaf’s maturing process, cause it to appear darker. I wonder if we also become less conscious of the green after we have seen it for a few weeks. When the dark tree trunks of winter become hidden by beautiful green leaves, we take notice. Our attention changes when we have seen the spring green and become overwhelmed by the summer.

In autumn, when the chloroplasts fade, the vibrant colors of other chemicals in the leaves catch our attention. Spring green and autumn gold and red can jar us into realizing the beauty of the world. However, we should not need sudden changes to make us conscious of the beauty of God’s wonders all around us. Evidence for God is there if we are willing to look. “For his invisible attributes, that is, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being understood through what he has made. As a result, people are without excuse” (Romans 1:20 CSB).

April 20, 2021April 17, 2021

Complex Photosynthesis and Life

Photosynthesis is a biochemical process that plants, algae, and some bacteria use to create food and release oxygen into Earth’s atmosphere. We recently pointed out even some sea slugs can use photosynthesis. Complex photosynthesis and life defy accidental explanation.

Chlorophyll is the molecule that drives the process. There are two chemical reactions–one dependent on light and one independent of light. In the light-dependent reaction, sunlight enters the plant and energizes the chlorophyll. The chlorophyll splits water into hydrogen and oxygen and feeds electrons into nearby molecules. The oxygen escapes and the hydrogen is used later. The freed electrons make a molecule called ATP, which fuels cellular functions. With more sunlight, a molecule called NADP is produced.

In the light-independent reaction, NADP combines with the freed hydrogen to make a larger molecule called NADPH. These components, NADPH, ATP, and an enzyme called RuBisCCo, create sugars and other carbohydrates using carbon dioxide and water in a complex chemical process called the Calvin-Benson cycle.

Chlorophyll uses light in the blue and red part of the spectrum, reflecting green light, which is why trees and grass are green. Photosynthesis takes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and forms the foundation of all food chains on Earth.

We have vastly oversimplified this explanation of complex photosynthesis and life. To believe that it could have happened by chance requires profound faith in luck. Photosynthesis reflects the wisdom of the Creator, who used some incredibly complex processes to establish life on this planet.

October 6, 2020October 5, 2020

Colors of Fall and What they Mean

The beauty of autumn’s brilliant colors is an amazing testimony to the creative wisdom of God as well as an expression of His love of beauty. The colors of fall are caused by several pigments and the interaction of sunlight and sugar.

Most of us know that chlorophyll makes leaves green. When leaves receive reduced sunlight in the fall, they also have a reduced supply of nutrients and water, causing the chlorophyll to be removed. The chlorophyll masks two pigments that have different colors. Carotene is yellow, and several varieties of anthocyanins are red. Many leaves contain tannin, which is brown and is dominant in oak trees. Sunlight acting on trapped sugar also produces anthocyanins with various sparkling colors, which is why the color is so spectacular on a sunny autumn day in a maple forest.

As the days grow shorter, the reduced amount of sunlight causes a corky wall called the “abscission layer” to form between the twig and the leaf stalk. This wall will eventually break and cause the leaf to drop off in the breeze. The corky material seals off the vessels that supplied the leaf with nutrients and water and blocks any loss of sugars from the plant.

What is especially interesting is that the leaf colors are not all the same. Some vines produce spectacular colors. Poison ivy takes on a beautiful red due to a high concentration of anthocyanin. Aspen has a high concentration of carotene producing the vivid yellows which dominate the woods in the Rocky Mountains. In Michigan, we have maples, gum, aspen, and oak, giving us spectacular colors that vary from one location to another.

The colors of fall are a great testimony to the fact that God paid attention to aesthetics in the creation. If survival of the fittest were the only criteria for choosing the chemicals that allow plants to survive, it seems that there would be one best choice. Different chemicals provide a vivid, beautiful splash of color for humans to enjoy. Beauty is not part of the evolutionary model, but it speaks of God’s creativity, giving us a wonderful and beautiful world in which to live.

February 3, 2019January 30, 2019

Ice Algae – Designed Polar Grass

Have you ever wondered how animals that live near Earth’s North and South Poles survive? What do they eat, and how can any kind of food chain exist? The answer to this is ice algae.

Unlike most plants, algae do not have flowers, roots, stems, leaves, or vascular tissue. However, ice algae, like most plants, provide the starting point for a food chain. In this case, it is a food chain in very cold places. Tiny krill, penguins, seals, polar bears, and blue whales all depend on ice algae to survive. In 2016 Dr. Thomas Brown of the Scottish Association for Marine Science studied polar bears and found that 86% of the polar bears’ nutrition came from a food chain that originated with ice algae.

Ice algae have chlorophyll so they can use whatever light is available for photosynthesis. There are a variety of types of algae that live in different conditions. Some live on the surface of the ocean, some on the floor of the ocean, and some in or on the ice itself. Ice algae produce fatty acids which supply nutritional value for animals that live in what would otherwise be a nutritional void. Because there is ice algae, animal life is abundant under, in, and around the ice at both poles.

God has provided interesting food chains all over the planet. As we study global warming and its effect on life in places like the polar seas, we see more of His handiwork and learn why we need to take care of it. The admonition of Genesis 2:15 to “take care of the garden to dress it and keep it” applies as much to us today as it did to Adam and Eve.
–John N. Clayton © 2019

Data from National Wildlife, February/March 2019, pages 14-16.