-
1965
Lovelock begins to define the idea of a self-regulating Earth while working at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. -
Period: to
gaia hypothesis
The Gaia Hypothesis proposed by James Lovelock suggests that living organisms on the planet interact with their surrounding inorganic environment to form a synergetic and self-regulating system that created, and now maintains, the climate and biochemical conditions that make life on Earth possible. -
1968
Astronaut William Anders takes the Earthrise photo from Apollo 8 on December 24. -
1969-1977
The hypothesis receives little attention from scientists. -
1972-1975
Lovelock publishes the Gaia hypothesis in book form. -
1985
The first public symposium on the Gaia hypothesis, Is The Earth A Living Organism?, is held at the University of Massachusetts Amherst from August 1–6. -
1988
Climatologist Stephen Schneider organizes a conference of the American Geophysical Union.