Amazing facts about the earth. Interesting facts about the planet Earth (15 photos)

Earth is the most unique planet in our galaxy (at least it will remain so until we find another planet that has life). In fact, it is so unique that people throughout the history of mankind have studied it and still do not fully understand all of its processes. Nevertheless, we know about our planet that it can pleasantly surprise us. From the absurd number of lightning strikes per day to varying gravity in different corners of it, the twenty-five facts about the Earth, which we will discuss below, can really surprise you:

25. The driest place on Earth is the Dry Valleys. It hasn't rained there for the past two million years.

24. Every year the wind carries 40 million tons of dust from the Sahara to the Amazon.

23. The temperature of the Earth's core is 5500 degrees Celsius and is equal to the temperature of the Sun's surface.

22.99 percent on Earth is at its core.

21. Earth is the only planet in the solar system to experience plate tectonics. Without her carbon dioxide would not be processed and the planet would overheat, like Venus.

20. 90 percent of the volcanoes on planet Earth are under water.

19. 1 liter of salt water contains 13 billionths of a gram of gold.

18. Salty water makes up 97 percent of all the Earth's water.

17. 70 percent of the remaining 3 percent is in the form of polar ice caps.

16. Most of the rest of the water is either soil moisture or is located deep underground in inaccessible aquifers.

15.1 / 5 small fraction fresh water, which is actually located in lakes and rivers, is located in one place - Lake Baikal in Russia.

14. Every day on Earth there are 8.6 million lightning strikes.

13. From a great distance, the Earth would be the brightest planet, because sunlight reflected from its water surface.

12. At an altitude of 19 kilometers, we encounter a phenomenon known as the Armstrong Limit. It is from this height that a person should be in a spacesuit, since due to low pressure, water boils at body temperature.

11. The Earth's orbit is polluted by 38,000 anthropogenic objects.

10. The size of 22,000 of them exceeds 10 meters.

9. Every day at least one of these objects falls to Earth.

8. To be precise, there are not 24 hours in a day. It takes only 23 hours, 56 minutes and 4 seconds for the Earth to complete a revolution on its axis. This concept is known as a sidereal day.

7. Contrary to popular belief, the Great Wall of China is not visible from space. However, air pollution in China can be seen from space. In addition, the Great Barrier Reef can be seen from space.

6. The farthest from the photograph was taken at a distance of 6 billion kilometers from the Earth. It is called "Pale Blue Dot", which means "pale blue dot".

5. The ozone hole is actually shrinking and in 2012 reached its smallest size in a decade.

4. Plastic accounts for 90 percent of the world's oceans' waste.

3. The Earth is not a perfect sphere, due to the force of rotation, the Earth is actually convex at the equator.

2. Because of this anomaly, in some regions the force of gravity is greater or less than in others. One such place is Hudson Bay in Canada. However, the difference is very small at only 0.005 percent.

1. We know more about our universe than about the oceans or the core of the Earth. In fact, we have not yet explored 95 percent of the world's oceans.

Soil - is the most favorable substrate or habitat for the vast majority of living things - microorganisms, animals and plants. In terms of their total biomass, the soil (land of the Earth) is almost 700 times larger than the ocean, although land accounts for less than 1/3 of the earth's surface.

Soil is the main regulator of the composition of the Earth's atmosphere. This is due to the activity of soil microorganisms, producing a variety of gases in huge quantities - nitrogen and its oxides, oxygen, carbon dioxide and monoxide, methane and other hydrocarbons, hydrogen sulfide, and a number of other volatile compounds.

At least a million different insects (that is, 95% of the total number of species known to scientists) are somehow associated with the soil. Some spend their whole life in the ground, the second lay eggs, the third have pupae in it, and the fourth have the larvae. And each of these living beings leaves its mark on the ground.

Nitrogen initially in the soil contains an average of 30 kg per hundred square meters, but exclusively in organic form, insoluble in water and inaccessible to plants. Soil microorganisms are gradually transferring nitrogen into the available mineral form.

On one hectare of virgin land, there are about 200 kilograms of microorganisms. The total mass of all living beings inhabiting this piece of land reaches a ton.

95% of the organic matter of a plant is formed from carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. Nitrogen - up to 4%, phosphorus - up to 0.8%, sulfur - up to 0.1%.

Now compare: In agricultural enterprises, in order to grow a good harvest of carrots, 800 kilograms of mineral fertilizers are applied per hectare of cultivated fields, and beets - already one ton.

From each hundred square meters of the garden, together with the harvest, it is taken out of the soil:
Late cabbage - 3.2 kg of nitrogen, 1.1 kg of phosphorus, 4.8 kg of potassium
Tomatoes - 1 kg of nitrogen, 1.6 kg of phosphorus, 1.3 potassium.
Radish - 0.5 kg of nitrogen, 0.18 - kg of phosphorus, 0.5 kg of potassium.

95% of the yield is determined organic matter obtained in green leaves due to air nutrition of plants - photosynthesis, and only the remaining 5% depend on soil or mineral nutrition. But if these 5% are not provided, then 95% will remain only as a potential opportunity.

Of all the external conditions, the decisive factor in the growth of tomatoes is the night temperature. If at night it rises above 24 or drops below 16 degrees, the fruits are not set at all.

For potato harvest - tubers are best formed at a night temperature of about 12 degrees.

On clear sunny days, the early morning hours are most productive for harvesting, when the air temperature does not exceed 20-25 ° C. The increase in organic matter at this time is 30 times greater than at higher temperatures.

Water cycle in nature: ocean water, which makes up 93% of the hydrosphere, makes a complete revolution in 2600 years; water of rivers and lakes (5.4% of the hydrosphere) - over 3.3 years; soil moisture (1.6% of the hydrosphere) - for 0.9 years.

Other articles in the literary diary:

• 15.02.2015. Interesting Facts about soil

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The Earth is not just a giant spinning blue-green ball that, by coincidence, has become our home. The earth is perhaps the most amazing and unique planet throughout the universe. We present to your attention 5 interesting facts that concern every earthling.

1. The earth is not round
And not flat, of course, either. The most appropriate name is a sphere, since gravitational forces prevent it from reaching the shape of an ideal ball. The equator of our planet is surrounded by protrusions that can be compared to "ears" at the waist of a sweet tooth. If you trust only numbers, then they are as follows: the polar radius of the Earth is 6357 km, and the equatorial radius is 6378 km, that is, the latter is 21 km longer.

2. The oceans are only 10% explored
Man went to the moon and launched a satellite to Mars, but you know what? Our home territories have not been fully explored, to put it mildly. More than 90% of the sea and ocean depths of the Earth are still a closed book. According to experts, dark waters hide about 25 million living things not described by science. To date, only 212906 species are known to us.

3. Cold record: -89.2 degrees Celsius

Antarctica is the coldest place on Earth, so it is not surprising that the cold record was recorded there. On July 21, 1983, the thermometers of the Russian scientific station "Vostok" dropped to 89 degrees below zero. It was a cool summer!
Well, the record for the highest temperature was broken on September 13, 1922 in Al-Aziziyah, a city in northwestern Libya. On that day, people literally went crazy from the 58-degree (!) Heat.

4. The highest point of the Earth is not Everest

Reaching 8,848 meters above sea level, Everest is rightfully considered a giant among the mountain peaks. But now we know that the Earth is not round (see point 1), and therefore any object located in the equatorial region will be a little closer to the stars. And although the "growth" of the extinct volcano Chimborazo in Ecuador is "only" 6,268 meters, being on the "hillock" makes it technically farther from the center of the Earth and thus 2.4 kilometers higher than Everest.

5. A few words about the moon

Tell me who your friend is, and I'll tell you who you are. "Girlfriend" (scientifically - the only natural satellite) of the Earth, the Moon has a mysterious appearance. For example, the Moon is covered in dust, which smells like gunpowder, but is not even remotely. Expression " dark side Moon "did not appear out of nowhere. Gravitational force The Earth slows down the movement of the satellite, so it makes a full revolution once a month, and we always see only one side of it. Not without interesting coincidences: the Sun is 400 times larger than the Moon and 400 times farther from the Earth, so these two planets seem to us the same size.

Based on materials from the site Oddee.com

The big bang theory is just one of the assumptions that does not have any solid evidence under it. Therefore, it is impossible to say unequivocally how it arose.

But we will tell you what is reliably known about the Blue Planet, as our common home is also called.

One earth day is the time it takes for the planet to rotate around its axis. , which we see, return to their places in the sky every 23 hours 56 minutes and 4.09 seconds. This is the so-called starry day. A sunny day takes exactly 24 hours.

The Earth is the third planet from the Sun. Its mass is 5.9726 × 1024 kg.

The distance from the Earth to the Sun is on average 150 million km, and from the Earth to - 384 467 kilometers.

Why does the earth rotate

An interesting fact is that the rotation of the Earth around the Sun can be explained by its fall. The gravity (gravity) of the Sun makes the Earth rotate around itself and around its axis in the same way that Earth's gravity makes a ball thrown from it roll. The speed at which the Earth moves around the Sun is approximately 29.765 km / s.

Age of the Earth

It is believed that the age of the earth is approximately 4.5 billion years. The age was established by taking into account the meteorites that fell to the Earth during its formation.

Again, it is scientifically incorrect to call these facts unambiguous due to the lack of reliable evidence.

What the Earth is made of

The core of the Earth consists of iron and nickel, which determines the force of gravity. The crust is mainly composed of oxygen and silicon. Between them is a mantle - molten silicon and sulfur compounds of metals, as well as their oxides.

What is the size of the Earth

We wrote a separate article about it. Briefly, we just note that at the equator the circumference of our planet is 40,075 km. The diameter is 12,578 km. The diameter of the Earth at the poles is 43 kilometers less, that is, at the poles, the planet is as if flattened.

What is the shape of the Earth

Some people think that the Earth is a perfect ball. In fact, things are a little different. At the equator, our planet is slightly convex, so the Earth's rotation speed is higher there. An interesting fact is that the shape the globe received the name "genoid".

How long is a year on Earth

One Earth year is the time during which the planet Earth makes one revolution around the sun. The length of the path is 938 886 400 km. We cover this distance in 365.24 days. We round off the calendar year to 365 days, no ponytail. But in science there are no superfluous "tails".

What is a leap year

An interesting fact is that scientists do not neglect 0.24 days, which are not included in the regular calendar. It is for this reason that one additional day appears every four years at the end of February (February 29).

When this happens, we call this a leap year. Interestingly, once every 4 centuries, one leap year is also skipped. This is such a confusing piece of science!

How the Earth differs from other planets

The Earth is the only planet whose temperature allows water to stay on the surface and the atmosphere contains vital oxygen. Water and oxygen are the most essential ingredients for the planet to have the possibility of life.

In no other place in the universe modern science I did not find even approximate conditions for life, except for the planet Earth, on which we live.

Our planet is pretty amazing and unique.

It is the only planet in our solar system that, as far as we know, has life, and it is also the most beautiful. (We may be biased here, but you should always be biased about your mother's beauty.)

There is always something new to learn, so here are 23 things you probably never knew about Earth!

1. Most people know that the Earth is the only planet in our solar system with an atmosphere that easily supports life (oxygen and water). What most people don't know is that the Earth is one of the four terrestrial planets (which means it is rocky on the surface). Venus, Mars and Mercury are the other three.

2. Every 100 years, the Earth's orbit rotates about 2 milliseconds slower. We are slowing down.

3. Surprisingly, we haven't explored most of the Earth. About 71% of the Earth's surface is covered with water, and we have barely explored the oceans. In fact, less than 10% (some say less than 5%) of the ocean has been studied. More than 200,000 marine species were identified in 10% that have been explored, so just imagine how much more amazing and unexplored remains in the oceans.

4. Despite the fact that most of the Earth's surface is covered with water, 68% of the fresh water on Earth is permanently frozen like ice caps and glaciers.

5. The earth is not quite round. It is a slightly soccer field thanks to the constant rotation. Therefore, despite the ideal sphere that we see so often, it is actually not that perfect.

6. There are no true blacks. The planet just doesn't grow them. They all have very deep shades of purple or red, some so dark that our eyes perceive them as black, but they are not true black.

7. Most major earthquake ever recorded occurred on May 22, 1960 in southern Chile near Valdivia. It is referred to as "Great Chilean earthquake", With a value of 9.5 points.

8. The Great Bristlepine in California is considered the oldest living organism on Earth, estimated at 5,067 years. Better known, but slightly younger, is a tree of the same species named Methuselah, which is 4,850 years old.

9. The tides exist because of the moon. The Moon's orbit controls sea level, which leads to ... tides. Moonquakes - like earthquakes but on the moon - can also affect tides. If the moon disappears, there will be no tides, and many more unpleasant things will happen for our planet.

10. The largest mountain range and the deepest valley are under the ocean. The Mariana Trench - seven miles deep - is 11 kilometers below the ocean floor, and only three people were at its bottom. Despite the insane pressure of all the water, there is still life there.

11. Nevertheless, despite these high highs and low lows, the Earth is quite smooth. Considering how big it is - 24,901 miles in circumference - all of these mountains and canyons, if you take into account 1 / 5000th of the total circumference. This means that if the Earth were small enough to be held in your hands, it would appear as smooth as a bowling ball.

12. Antarctica is one of the best places to find meteorites. This is not only due to the fact that there are more of them there, but rather because they are quite easy to find due to the lack of vegetation and a large number snow. More meteorites have been found in Antarctica than anywhere else.

13. If all the ice in Antarctica melted, sea level would rise by 60 meters throughout the Earth.

14. Earth's magnetic poles are moving. They moved before and they will move again. This is not the end of the world.

15. There are five main layers in the earth's atmosphere - Esphosphere, Thermosphere, Mesosphere, Stratosphere and Troposphere. The higher, the thinner. The densest layer is the troposphere, where the weather occurs.

16. There are boiling rivers on Earth. In the Peruvian rainforest, a legitimate shaman cares and protects the sacred healing site of Mayantuyacu. Mayantuyaku has a 4 mile long river named Shanai Timpishka that reaches 91 ° C, although it does boil in some parts.

17. At least 30 different places on Earth have sand dunes that ... sing. They sing and wheeze, and it sounds like something between a swarm of bees and the chanting of monks.

18. Earthly tectonic plates constantly shuffle around each other, causing earthquakes, tsunamis and forming mountains. They also play very important role in the carbon cycle, which means carbon-based life forms are doing very well here.

19. Due to the amount of heavy elements in the composition of the Earth - lead, uranium, - the Earth is the densest planet in Solar system, which gives it the highest surface gravity of any terrestrial object (planets, dwarf planets or the moon) in the solar system.

20. Climate in general tends to move from warm to cold. There have been at least 5 major ice ages throughout the planet's history, and technically we are still living in the tail of the latter, which began just over 3 million years ago and peaked about 20,000 years ago. Ice ages start slowly and end abruptly, sometimes warming up to 20 ° F worldwide in just a few years, according to scientists! In the last 100,000 years alone, there have been no less than 24 such rapid temperature changes on Earth.

21. The Moon of the Earth, which has no official name, like the moons of other planets, is huge compared to the size of the Earth. Most scientists think this is because the Moon was part of the Earth. The theory is that millions of years ago, an asteroid crashed into Earth, causing one piece to split off and eventually become the Moon. She just wants to stay close to home.

22. The softest mineral on Earth is talc. Yes, talc, which we use in cosmetics and on babies' feet, as well as in ceramic glaze and papermaking.

23. Every year, our planet accounts for 40,000 tons of cosmic dust. It is made from oxygen, nickel, iron, carbon, and other elements. It's literally stardust. The planet is covered in this dust. We breathe it in. It's pretty cool when you think about it.