When the Planet Rages describes some of the great events of environmental history, from natural calamities such as the Lisbon earthquake of 1755 and the ice ages, to man-made disasters such as Chernobyl, acid rain, and the depletion of the ozone layer. Officer and Page provide fascinating discussions of meteorites and comets; of the demise of mammoths, mastodons, and dinosaurs; and of great floods that have swept the earth. But they also show that human activity can make trouble for nature, from the depletion of natural resources to air and water pollution.

Charles Officer is Research Professor in the Earth Sciences Department and Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth College.

Jake Page has written some 450 books of fiction and nonfiction along with hundreds of magazine articles and columns, mostly on the natural sciences and American Indian affairs. He writes a regular column for Destination Discovery called "Jake's Page".

• PART ONE - NATURE'S EFFECT ON MANKIND


• 1: The Earth is Still Hot and Mobile


• 2: ...And from Time to Time Its Surface Moves Around


• 3: There Have Been Frequent Flooding and Sea-Level Change Events on Earth


• 4: ...And Occasional Visitors from Outer Space


• PART TWO - CHANGES IN CLIMATE AND LIFE ON EARTH


• 5: The Earth's Climate Changes on a Variety of Time Scales


• 6: ...And on Rare Occasions There Are Changes in Its Community of Living Things


• PART THREE - MAN'S EFFECT ON NATURE


• 7: Then Along Came Man and Man Has Effected Vast Environmental Changes on a Local and Regional Scale


• 8: ...With the Potential for Equally Great Changes on a Global Scale


• 9: The Most Fundamental Question Facing Mankind Today is Whether Man Can Evolve to Live in Harmony with Nature