parts 3
1596 Words
41. The moon may have been formed as the result of a collision.
Not a ton of information is known about how the moon was created, but one hypothesis claims that a planet, asteroid, or perhaps a comet—called Theia—collided into Earth, resulting in debris flying into space. That debris may have formed the moon as we know it today.
42. One of Earth's coolest phenomena is the Auroras.
Known colloquially as the Southern Lights or Aurora Australias, Aurora Borealis, or Nothern Lights, Auroras happen when particles from the sun collide with the upper atmosphere of Earth near the poles. According to Space.com, this results in a sort of rainbow of lights twinkling in the sky, like a crystal in the sun.
43. Earth's magnetic north pole is moving northward.
NASA has said that Earth's magnetic north pole has slowly moved northward by more than 600 miles since the early 19th century. As of right now, the pole is moving at about 40 miles per year.
44. Earth experiences a pole reversal every 200,000 to 300,000 years.
According to Nature, Earth's poles reverse approximately every 200,000 to 300,000 years.
In fact, over the past 20 million years, our planet has settled into a pattern of a pole reversal about every 200,000 to 300,000 years, according to the journal Nature. As of 2012, however, it has been more than twice that long since the last reversal.
45. The most recent scheduled pole reversal actually hasn't happened.
In fact, 2012 marked double the amount of time since the last pole switch.
46. All across the world, Earth is home to 8.7 million species.
That we know of! According to National Geographic, that includes plants and animal species.
47. The world's largest tree is the General Sherman.
A giant sequoia located in Sequoia National Park in California, the General Sherman is 52,500 feet in volume and is more than 2,000 years old.
The General Sherman giant sequoia is the largest known stem tree by volume on the planet. The trunk of the tree contains slightly more than 52,500 cubic feet (1,486.6 cubic meters) of material.
48. The oldest tree in the world is almost 5,000 years old.
According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the oldest—verified—tree in existence is a bristlecone pine, nicknamed Methusela. As of 2020, Methusela was deemed 4,852 years old.
49. The Pacific Ocean contains more than half of Earth's free water.
In fact, you could actually squeeze all of the continents into the Pacific basin. It's that big.
50. The hottest place on Earth is Libya.
More specifically, El Azizia, Libya. The hottest ever recorded temp in El Azizia was 136 °F (57.8 °C) back on September 13, 1922, NASA Earth Observatory records show.
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51. Mountain ranges were made by the Earth's shifting rocks.
Called tectonic plates, the movements that Earth's underground, shifting rocks make actually drive the formation of mountain ranges—including the Himalayas, which formed some 40 or 50 million years ago.
52. The coldest temp Earth has ever seen came from Russia.
At Russia's Vostok Station, temperatures were recorded as low as -128.6 °F (-89.2 °C) on July 21, 1983.
53. Glaciers are retreating, causing sea levels to rise.
It's one of the many terrible effects of climate change. That also means that we're losing a lot of the world's freshwater.
54. The moon experiences moonquakes, just as Earth experiences earthquakes.
Moonquakes, however, aren't nearly as powerful as earthquakes, but they are, in fact, caused by the moon's tidal relationship with Earth.
55. We don't actually know what the tallest mountain on Earth is.
But we can narrow it down to two! Mount Everest's summit is higher above sea level than the summit of any other—about 29,029 feet high. But Everest is actually, technically tied with Mauna Kea because when measured from the base of the summit below sea level to its top point, Mauna Kea measures 56,000 feet.
56. Some hikers have summited Everest without oxygen.
Speaking of Mount Everest, did you know that people have actually climbed the mountain without the help of oxygen before? Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler became the first to do so on May 8, 1978, according to Respiratory Physiology and Neurobiology.
57. The Pacific Ocean is Earth's largest ocean basin.
It covers about 63 million square miles, after all.
58. The wettest place in the world is Mawsynram.
When it comes to annual rainfall, Mawsynram, India takes the cake with over 10,000 millimeters of rain per year. You can thank monsoon season for that!
59. The most snowfall per year happens in Japan.
Surprising? Perhaps, but Aomori City, Japan may just be the snowiest place in the world. On average, Aomori City experiences 312 inches of snowfall annually.
60. The world's largest living structures are coral reefs.
What's a living structure, you ask? Well, a coral reef is, in fact, alive. According to NOAA, coral reefs are a crucial part to thousands of species per unit of any of the other ecosystems on Earth.
61. Oceans cover about 70 percent of Earth's surface.
According to NOAA, about 70 percent of the surface of Earth is covered in oceans.
62. However, humans haven't even discovered all of Earth's oceans.
But that doesn't mean we've explored it all! The NOAA adds that we—meaning, humans—have only discovered about 20 percent of Earth's waters.
63. The largest earthquake to hit Earth occurred in Chile.
With a massive magnitude of 9.5, the world's largest earthquake took place in Bio-Bio, Chile on May 22, 1960.
64. About 20 percent of the U.S. is a coastline.
However, that's not including Alaska.
65. Stromboli Volcano is the world's most active volcano.
Contrary to popular belief, of course, as historically, Kilauea—in Hawaii—has been recorded as such. But it's not true. Located off the coast of Italy, the aptly-named Stromboli Volcano has been non-stop erupting for more than 2,000 years.
66. Rocks have been known to "walk" at The Racetrack Playa, Death Valley.
In a specific part of Death Valley National Park in California—known as The Racetrack Playa or The Racetrack—rocks have been known to "walk" on their own. According to NASA, these ice-encrusted "sailing stones" as they're called retain meltwater from the hills above, allowing the wind to pick them up and throw them around. This phenomenon has been known to leave "racetrack" imprints on the ground—hence its moniker.
67. One stroke of lightning heats the air to about 54,000 degrees Fahrenheit.
That translates to 30,000 degrees Celsius. In other words, hot!
68. Humans tend to live near the coastline.
What can we say? We love a coastal view. In fact, coastlines are where 40 percent of the U.S. population makes their home, according to NOAA.
Related: Earth Day Recipes
69. Earth is actually sprinkled with "cosmic dust."
As in, interplanetary material. According to Astronomy Magazine, as much as 100 tons of said cosmic dust sprinkle down onto Earth. Where does this dust come from? As a comet comes in close contact with the sun, its ices vaporize, releasing tiny particles into space that then float down onto Earth's surface.
70. The coldest place on Earth is in Antarctica.
Antarctica certainly takes the cake for Earth's coldest place. After all, temps get as low as -100 °F with the unimaginable wind chill (that's -73 °C).
71. There could be as much as 20 million tons of gold hidden in Earth's oceans.
That's according to Forbes. However, that 20 million tons of gold is diluted by each liter of seawater. Above water, comes out to about 13 billionths of a gram of gold in each liter of seawater.
72. There's also undissolved gold in the seafloor.
But, as you can imagine, it's nearly impossible to get to. However, if we could get to it, the NOAA says if we distributed it evenly, each individual could go home with nine pounds of gold.
73. Earth is home to three deadly, explosive lakes.
We're not kidding. Nyos, Monoun, and Kivu are three crater lakes located above volcanic earth. Located in Cameroon, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, each of these lakes is situated on top of magma. The surface emits carbon dioxide into the lakes, leaving a layer of carbon dioxide that eventually can be released by way of the explosion. And yes—it's deadly. Just think of how much CO2 and explosion like that would release!
74. The world's longest mountain range is actually underwater.
Shocking—right?! Known as the mid-ocean ridge, the world's longest mountain range is an underwater chain of volcanoes that spans 40,389 miles, according to NOAA.
75. Over the millions of years, sea levels have changed.
Sea levels on Earth have not always remained the same. According to NASA, sea levels have been anywhere from 230 feet higher than they are now to 390 feet lower in the past.
Day by day, we live our lives marked by the rotation of our planet, giving us our beautiful sunrises and sunsets.
But have you ever wondered about the planet we live on, the Earth?
Have you ever wondered what it’s made of? Or how much it weighs?
Maybe you’ve wondered why we have a leap year. Or perhaps you’ve never really given it a passing thought.
Here are 30 interesting facts about our brilliant planet for those of you who want to learn something new!
- Writer
