Earth & climate
Earth in space
Our planet orbits the Sun, catches chunks of rock from space and is so far the only place we know of with life.
When you stand outside, the ground under you feels solid and motionless. In reality the Earth is a ball racing through space at about 30 kilometres per second. It is one of eight planets orbiting the Sun. And as far as we know, it is the only place far and wide where there is life.
A journey around the Sun
The Earth the Sun on a huge path. For one complete lap it needs a whole year. At the same time the Earth's axis is tilted by about 23.5 degrees, and it always points in the same direction. So during the year the northern half of the Earth is tilted towards the Sun at some times and the southern half at others. On the half tilted towards the Sun the midday Sun stands high and summer arrives, on the other half it stays low above the horizon and winter arrives. That is how spring, summer, autumn and winter come about.
Stones from space
In space countless small chunks of rock whir around. When one of them runs into the Earth's blanket of air, it plunges in at several kilometres per second. It squeezes the air in front of it together, that air turns glowing hot, and the chunk flares up as a bright streak in the night sky: a shooting star. Most of these chunks are barely bigger than a grain of sand and burn up completely. Only rarely does a larger piece fall all the way to the ground, and then it is called a .
Earth's axis always points the same way, tilted by 23.5°.
sun high in the sky, long days
The tilt makes the seasons, not the distance to the sun.
Why the Earth is special
The Earth has just the right distance from the Sun: not too hot and not too cold. That is why there is liquid water, a blanket of air to breathe and a mild climate. Each of the other planets is missing something: on Venus it is glowing hot at over 400 degrees Celsius, and on Mars the air is thin and the water is frozen to ice. Exactly this rare mixture makes our planet a unique home that we should protect.
Exercises
0 of 6 solvedTime to try it yourself. You can't break anything, every attempt counts.
The Earth needs one year for one full lap. Which body in the sky does it circle?
What is called a shooting star?
One year on Earth has 12 months. How many months is that in 4 years?
If a larger piece of rock from space falls all the way to the ground, it is called a ….
8 planets orbit the Sun. The Earth is one of them. How many planets are there without the Earth?
Put the path of a chunk of rock from space in the correct order.
- 1It plunges into the Earth's blanket of air and starts to glow.
- 2A remnant reaches the ground as a meteorite.
- 3The chunk whirs freely through space.