It was only a few decades ago that our astronauts took the picture of planet earth-on the cover of this book-that changed history. Not only could we see how beautiful our home is, but also that there was a thin blue line around it-our atmosphere, our security blanket. Without it, earth would be just rock, fiercely hot on one side-hotter than boiling water-and extremely cold-much colder than dry ice-on the other. Because of it, we have all the richness of nature that sustains us and brings us the beauty of summer days, flowers, food, rain, wild kingdoms, and so much more. Now it's clear that some folks are destroying our security blanket. Mankind has a sacred obligation to protect our atmosphere for the generations to come.