Earth is a tiny blue dot in the vastness of space. This planet has been our home since time immemorial. It has gone through numerous transitions to become what we know it as today.
Earth is an intriguing terrestrial planet, close to five billion years old. The globe is the third planet from the sun, and it sits at a distance of about 150 million kilometres away.
Down to earth numbers
Some indications would have one believe that Earth is a perfectly shaped sphere, when to the contrary, it is not. Earth’s axis is tilted, and the centrifugal forces surrounding it push outward. The planet’s gravity results in our water masses being pushed into what looks like a bulging planet. That bulging occurs at the equator due to a constant rotation.
In some areas, this rotation at the axis occurs at approximately 1,600 kilometers per hour, with inhabitants living on the equator moving the fastest. Not only is this planet rotating, it revolves around the sun in an elliptical orbit at the rate of close to 108,000 kilometres an hour, taking approximately 365 “earth” days to complete.
We’re actually walking on recycled ground. The transformation of the rock cycle turns igneous and sedimentary rock to metamorphic, at which point the cycle is repeated.
Under pressure and heat, metamorphic rock can transition into flowing liquefied rock, found under the Earth’s crust, and when flowing is known as lava, which is ejected in volcanic activity. In fact, moonquakes, similar to earthquakes, to a lesser degree, occur on the moon as a subsequent result of this planet and the sun’s gravitational effects .
Beneath the silvery moon
Tidal locking (co-orbiting of astronomical bodies) is caused by the earth’s gravity and only allows us to view one side of the moon. It would be interesting to note that months and days remain the same under a lunar calendar of 29.5 days. The gravitational pull from the moon and the sun creates this planet’s tides.
The core of this planet is 2,900 kilometres below the earth’s crust and is composed of hot iron and nickel where liquid metal exists and flows. The core’s temperature ranges from 4,000 – 5,000 degrees Celsius. This creates a geomagnetic field whereby this molten liquid creates electric currents. This geomagnetic field is crucial to our survival, shielding us from the consistent bombardment of charged particles emitted by the sun.
The magnetic north pole of the planet has been moving northward by approximately 64 kilometres per year according to National Geographic and has been doing so since the 19th century.
Two moons in the sky
When someone quips to you that you will see “two moons in the sky” about a possible occurrence, they’re not exactly incorrect. It’s believed that Earth may have had two moons according to Space.com. Perhaps orbiting the earth was a smaller moon that collided with the moon we view today, explaining why the two sides of the moon differ.
Space.com also notes that earth’s gravity captures many asteroids and mini-moons that return to space after orbiting our planet. They generally return to open space after about a year. According to Time magazine, there is a smaller moon known as a quasi-moon. This natural satellite, discovered in 2016, is 50 meters across and orbits Earth in a cork-screw trajectory. The non-conventional orbit of this moon is attributed to both the gravitational pull of earth and the intense gravity of the sun.
The tallest mountains on Earth
This attribution goes to either Mount Everest (close to 9,000 meters high, in the Himalayas) from base to summit, or Mauna Kea, a dormant volcano and the clear winner (located in Hawaii) with a height of over 10,000 meters. Mauna Kea’s mountain reaches approximately 6,000 meters beneath the Pacific Ocean, making it over one kilometre taller than Mount Everest.
Kangchenjunga (Kangchenjunga Himal), with a height of over 8,600 meters, was declared the world’s third highest mountain in 1856. It is known as Killer Mountain for good reason. Since the 1990s, more than 20 percent of climbers have perished while attempting to reach its main peak.
Largest of our liveable planets
Earth, covered by 70 percent water, is the largest of the four planets closest to the sun, also known as a terrestrial planet. Its nomenclature does not derive from Greek or Roman, like our other planets. It was derived from Old English and Germanic, simply meaning “the ground.” As far as we know, it’s the only inhabited planet to date.
This planet’s vast oceans have created a great ecosystem, so to speak, enabling life to exist stretching back close to 4 billion years. Our longest mountain range — the mid-ocean ridge — stretches 61,000 kilometres around the globe at the bottom of the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, making it at least four times longer than the combined lengths of the Andes, Rockies and Himalayas.
More interesting facts to ponder
Earth’s atmosphere shields us from most of the sun’s radiation and incoming meteors from space.The atmosphere is composed of 78 percent nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen, and one percent other gases such as argon, carbon dioxide and neon. Most meteors burn up in the atmosphere before falling to earth as meteorites.
People living at the equator are rotating faster, while those residing at the north or south pole remain relativey stable. Although the diversity for this is minor — about less than half a percent — at the poles, a bit more force is exerted on the ground beneath you.
To sum up the Earth
Our home is an intriguing and mysterious place to reside. New information is consistently discovered through research. We are ideally situated away from the sun to make this planet habitable and, for the most part, comfortable. If we were closer to the sun, we would receive too much energy with temperatures soaring. Too far from the sun, we would surely freeze. In either case, we would not be here today.
Climate change may possibly change all that, so we have to remain diligent and proactive in response to these changes. It’s a difficult task, but with ingenuity, perseverance and some forethought, it’s not impossible. Remember there is no planet B.