The EarthBy Megan Duhamel

Scholastic Vocabulary Readers

What is the Earth? A planet

It is roundIt is beautiful

It is more than four billion years oldMost of it is covered with water

The only planet where living things have been found

There are more than six and a half billion people inhabit (live) the Earth.

What is an ATMOSPHERE?

It is a thick blanket of air that surrounds the Earth.

78% nitrogen21% oxygen

1% other

REVOLUTION365 days

You cannot feel it, but the Earth is always moving

It travels around the sun on an invisible path

It takes about one year to go all the way around

ROTATIONThe spinning of Earth as it travels around the sun

When one part of the Earth faces the sun, another part faces away. This is why we have days and nights.

It takes 24 hours for the Earth to rotate around the sun.

DAY AND NIGHT

24 hours

ROTATION23 hours and 56 minutes or 24 hours

ROTATION

SEASONS

When the Earth is tilted as it moves around the sun.

When the U.S. is tilted away from the sun, it is winter.

.When the U.S. is tilted TOWARD the sun, it is summer.

ROTATION

DISTANCE FROM THE SUN

•150 million kilometers

•93 million miles

DIAMETER

12, 800 kilometers

7,900 miles

TEMPERATURE

Varies with location

HOW MANY MOONS?

One!

SURFACE AREA

• It is mostly blue with brown and green continents and white ice-capped poles

• Three fourths is covered with water

THE CHANGING EARTH

Earth is always changing. Wind and water carve deep CANYONS.

It took millions of years to make the Grand Canyon.Lava comes from deep inside the Earth.Lava flows from volcanoes, cools and hardens, and can build tall mountains.

People can change the Earth too (build farms, towns and big cities.