No place like home!
Ahhh! Our home planet. Beautiful!
Here's a page dedicated to this planet.
Here's a page dedicated to this planet.
You know, it's weird that this planet is called... Earth. Why? Because (you may know this already) the planet is, amazingly, about 71% water! Hmmm... so what shall we call it... how about Planet Damp or Planet Swimming Pool?!
Also, do you think that this world is overrun by humans? Well you thought wrong: if, for some reason, you weighed all the living things on our planet, a whopping 99.99% of the weight would come from plants! Aggh! Plant invasion!
Also, do you think that this world is overrun by humans? Well you thought wrong: if, for some reason, you weighed all the living things on our planet, a whopping 99.99% of the weight would come from plants! Aggh! Plant invasion!
The Right Conditions
Have you ever wondered why scientists haven't found aliens yet? It's because the conditions aren't right for life. But Earth? Earth is the world's Mr. Average: so the conditions aren't too hot or cold for life. If you don't believe us, then check this out:
- Earth is the third warmest planet
- Earth has the fifth fastest spin
- Earth has the fourth-strongest gravity
Layers Of The Earth
Want to know the layers of the Earth?
Here's the diagram:
Here's the diagram:
1. This is the crust - the bit you're standing on. It's extremely thin: if you're in the sea, the mantle can be 3 miles thin! Be careful that you don't fall through! This is the bit that sandwiches all the others, like, hmm... a sandwich!
2.This bit, the mantle, is MUCH thicker; about 1800 miles deep! This is mostly made up of semi-molten magma. Nearer to the crust temperatures range from 500 to 900 degrees Celsius, and nearer to the outer core, it can reach up to 4000 degrees! Wow - hot!
3. The outer core is liquid - made of iron and nickel, and is not quite as deep as the mantle, as it's only 1400 miles deep. 4000-5000 degrees is the temperature of this layer.
4. The final bit - the inner core... This is a solid ball of iron and nickel, just like the outer core. "But hang on!" you yell. "How can it be solid? It's too hot to be SOLID!" Well, while this is the hottest layer ( about 5500 degrees Celsius), it has an immense pressure put on it by the other layers, which keeps it in a solid ball.
Cooooooool!
2.This bit, the mantle, is MUCH thicker; about 1800 miles deep! This is mostly made up of semi-molten magma. Nearer to the crust temperatures range from 500 to 900 degrees Celsius, and nearer to the outer core, it can reach up to 4000 degrees! Wow - hot!
3. The outer core is liquid - made of iron and nickel, and is not quite as deep as the mantle, as it's only 1400 miles deep. 4000-5000 degrees is the temperature of this layer.
4. The final bit - the inner core... This is a solid ball of iron and nickel, just like the outer core. "But hang on!" you yell. "How can it be solid? It's too hot to be SOLID!" Well, while this is the hottest layer ( about 5500 degrees Celsius), it has an immense pressure put on it by the other layers, which keeps it in a solid ball.
Cooooooool!
A quick note about Seasons, days, and years
The reason why seasons are here is that the Earth is tilted at an angle of 23.5 degrees, so as the Earth moves around the Sun, the Sun faces some parts of the Earth more than others causing seasons. And of course, days are created when Earth isn't and is facing the Sun. Years are made when the Earth completes a lap around the Sun, which is actually a quarter of a day not right. So, every four years, we add those quarters together to make an extra day, a leap year!
How the moon was formed
The moon was made, in theory, when a giant asteroid hit the Earth, knocking rocks into the air, which, by gravity, stuck together and made the moon!
Did you know...?
This is actually what makes the Earth at an angle of 23.5 degrees!
It spins
Despite what you may have heard, the moon DOES spin. But it does it in a weird way: all the time, it faces Earth, so you never see the back of it.
So it spins: it would have to to do this because if it just faced the same way, then you'd eventually see the other side of the moon.
So it spins: it would have to to do this because if it just faced the same way, then you'd eventually see the other side of the moon.
The Earth isn't a sphere...
All the time, the moon's gravitational pull is tugging at the Earth. So, actually, because of the pulling, the Earth is actually shaped like (very slightly) an egg!