The Earth is our home planet, and it’s the third planet from the Sun. So far, it’s the only place we know that’s inhabitable and inhabited by living things. While it may be true that the Earth is the fifth largest planet in our solar system, it’s the only planet that has liquid water on its surface. It’s also given credit to be slightly larger than its neighboring planet, Venus.
Earth’s name is estimated to be at least 1,000 years old. All of the planets in our solar system were named after Roman and Greek gods and goddesses except for Earth. Interestingly, it’s a Germanic word, which promptly means “the ground.”
Formation
The solar system is estimated to have settled into its current layout around 4.5 billion years ago. The Earth started to form through dust and gas, and it eventually became the third planet from the Sun we now know. Gravity also deserves a part of the credit as it pulled in both the swirling gas and dust along the process. Like its fellow neighboring terrestrial planets, the Earth features a central core, a solid crust, and a rocky mantle.
Structure
Our home planet is composed of four main layers, with an inner core at the planet’s center. The inner core is then enveloped by the outer core, followed by the mantle and crust. The inner core is made out of nickel and iron metals, and it spans 759 miles or 1,221 kilometers in radius. You certainly can’t ask your financial advisor to help you book a ticket into the inner core as you’d easily melt in temperatures of over 5,400 degrees Celsius.
As we said, the inner core is enveloped by the outer core, and it spans 1,400 miles. It’s incredibly thick, and it’s made out of iron and nickel fluids.
The thickest layer is indisputably the mantle as it spans 1,800 miles. It’s composed of a hot mixture of molten rock, so it’s probably best to scratch the mantle in your dream destinations. Lastly, the outermost layer of the Earth is the crust, and it goes about 30 kilometers or 19 miles.
Surface
The Earth shares a close resemblance with its neighboring planets. Both Mars and Venus have their fair share of mountains, valleys, and volcanoes, and Earth is no exception. The planet’s lithosphere includes the continental and oceanic crust and the upper mantle, which is strategically divided into huge, constantly moving plates.
As we said, the Earth is the only planet that has water, and it covers around 70 percent of the planet’s surface. Interestingly, the majority of Earth’s volcanoes are hidden under 70 percent of the entire Ocean area.
The Atmosphere
The Earth is the only habitable world or planet we know so far, and the atmosphere deserves a ton of credit for that. The atmosphere consists of 21 percent oxygen, 78 percent nitrogen, and 1 percent mixture of gases such as carbon dioxide, neon, and argon.
The atmosphere also directly affects the long-term climate of the planet as well as the short-term local weather. It also shields us from the harmful radiation that’s coming from the Sun.
But wait, there’s more! The atmosphere also plays a role in protecting us from meteoroids. Meteors in the night sky mostly burn up in the atmosphere before reaching the Earth’s surface as meteorites. Where would we truly be without the atmosphere?
Moons & Rings
You may have probably seen planets in our solar system that feature beautiful rings, and unfortunately, Earth isn’t one of them. Moreover, the Earth is the only planet in this solar system with a single moon. The moon is the brightest object that we see in the night sky, assuming that rain clouds don’t block the view.
The moon isn’t just there for aesthetic purposes. It plays a vital role in stabilizing the planet’s wobble, making the Earth’s climate less unpredictable over thousands of years. The moon definitely deserves credit for life as we know it since life wouldn’t exist without the ever-watching moon.
There are some nights wherein the moon looks incredibly big and massive in the night sky. However, it’s farther away from the Earth than most of us realize. The distance between the Earth and the moon is around 384,400 kilometers away. With that distance, you could fit 30 Earth-sized planets between the Earth and the moon!
Potential for Life
Our home planet has an incredibly hospitable temperature and a certain mix of chemicals that enable it to sustain life. Earth is one of the unique planets we know that is covered in water. With the fact that the Earth has a hospitable temperature, water can exist for extended periods. Moreover, Earth’s oceans have provided a convenient place for life to begin and thrive, dating back around 3.8 billion years ago.
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