Earth

Earth, our home planet, is a beautiful blue and white ball when seen from space. The third planet from the Sun, it is the largest of the inner planets. Earth is the only planet known to support life and to have liquid water at the surface. Earth has a substantial atmosphere and magnetic field, both of which are critical for sustaining life on Earth. Earth is the innermost planet in the solar system with a natural satellite – our Moon. Explore our beautiful home planet – unique in our solar system - through the links in this section.

As temperatures rise and soil moisture decreases, plants are stressed, which can lead to <a href="/earth/climate/crops_withering.html&edu=high&dev=">crop withering</a>. <a href="/teacher_resources/online_courses/health/events_health.html&edu=high&dev=">Droughts</a> accompanied by increased temperatures can lead to famine, social and political disruptions. Scientists are helping with early identification of drought that might trigger food shortages. Watch the NBC Learn video - <a href="/earth/changing_planet/withering_crops_intro.html&edu=high&dev=">Changing Planet: Withering Crops</a> to find out more.<p><small><em>Image taken by Tomas Castelazo, Creative Commons <a href=&quot;http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en&quot;>Attribution 3.0 Unported</a> license.</em></small></p>This iconic image of Earth rising above the surface of the <a href="/earth/moons_and_rings.html&edu=high&dev=">Moon</a>, was taken on December 24, 1968 by astronauts on the <a href="/space_missions/apollo8.html&edu=high&dev=">Apollo 8 mission</a>. Apollo 8 was the first <a href="/space_missions/manned.html&edu=high&dev=">manned mission</a> to the Moon, and entered into lunar orbit on Christmas Eve. That evening, the astronauts held a live broadcast from lunar orbit, in which they showed pictures of the Earth and moon as seen from their spacecraft.<p><small><em> Image courtesy of NASA</em></small></p>Greenland's <a href="http://www.windows2universe.org/earth/polar/cryosphere_glacier1.html">ice sheet</a> saw a record <a href="http://www.windows2universe.org/headline_universe/olpa/greenland_10dec07.html">melt</a> in July 2012. Scientists studying this event have found that this melting event was triggered by an influx of unusually warm air and amplified by the presence of a blanket of thin low-level <a href="http://www.windows2universe.org/earth/Atmosphere/cloud.html">clouds</a> which pushed temperatures up above freezing. For more information see the <a href="http://www.news.wisc.edu/21638">press release</a> from the University of Wisconsin Madison.<p><small><em>Image courtesy of University of Wisconsin-Madison</em></small></p>This is an artist's conception of the Earth and the inner and outer <a href="/glossary/radiation_belts.html&edu=high&dev=">radiation belts</a> that surround it. The Earth's radiation belts are just one part of the system called the <a href="/earth/Magnetosphere/overview.html&edu=high&dev=">magnetosphere</a>. The radiation belts of the Earth are made up of <a href="/physical_science/physics/atom_particle/electron.html&edu=high&dev=">electrons</a>, <a href="/physical_science/physics/atom_particle/proton.html&edu=high&dev=">protons</a> and heavier atomic ions. These particles get trapped in the <a href="/earth/Magnetosphere/earth_magnetic_field.html&edu=high&dev=">magnetic field of the Earth</a>. These belts were <a href="/earth/Magnetosphere/radiation_belts_discovery.html&edu=high&dev=">discovered</a> by James Van Allen in 1958, and so they are known as Van Allen Belts.<p><small><em>Courtesy of Windows to the Universe</em></small></p>Scientists at the University of Michigan have found that <a href="/earth/polar/cryosphere_permafrost1.html&edu=high&dev=">permafrost</a> in the <a href="/earth/polar/polar_north.html&edu=high&dev=">Arctic</a> is extremely sensitive to sunlight. Exposure to sunlight releases carbon gases trapped in the permafrost, including <a href="/earth/climate/earth_greenhouse.html&edu=high&dev=">climate-warming</a> <a href="/physical_science/chemistry/carbon_dioxide.html&edu=high&dev=">carbon dioxide</a>, to the <a href="/earth/Atmosphere/overview.html&edu=high&dev=">atmosphere</a> much faster than previously thought.<p><small><em>George Kling, The University of Michigan</em></small></p>An <a href="http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/usc000905e.php">8.6 magnitude earthquake</a> struck on 11 April 2012 off of Banda Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia, followed by a strong aftershock. Earthquake motion was primarily horizontal. A tsunami warning was issued for the Indian Ocean, but was cancelled at 12:36 UTC. A tsunami was observed at 1 meter or less. Find out more about <a href="/earth/geology/quake_1.html&edu=high&dev=">earthquake</a> and <a href="/earth/tsunami1.html&edu=high&dev=">tsunami</a> processes. Check out the resources <a href="/teacher_resources/2011_AGU-NESTA_GIFT_Workshop.html&edu=high&dev=">here</a>.<p><small><em>NOAA</em></small></p>

Explore Earth

Earth's Interior and Surface

Earth, the largest and densest rocky planet, was formed about 4.5 billion years ago. The Earth's ...Read more

Atmosphere

The atmosphere is a mixture of nitrogen (78%), oxygen (21%), and other gases (1%) that surrounds ...Read more

Magnetosphere

The Earth has a magnetic field with north and south poles. The magnetic field of the Earth ...Read more

Moon

The Earth's one natural satellite, the Moon, is more than one quarter the size of Earth itself ...Read more

Earth's Polar Regions

Do you wonder what Earth's Polar Regions are like? Where do polar bears live? Where do penguins ...Read more

Climate and Global Change

Warm near the equator and cold at the poles, our planet is able to support a variety of living ...Read more

Water (The Hydrosphere)

Water is found in many places on Earth including on the surface of the planet, within rocks ...Read more

Life and Ecology (The Biosphere)

What is life? Why is there life on Earth, but not on any other planets in the solar system ...Read more

Natural Hazards

The United Nations estimated that between 1994-2015, there were 6,873 natural disasters worldwide, ...Read more

More about Earth

Historical Events

Full Earth and Space Science    History Calendar (Members only)

Teacher Opportunities

Full Teacher Events Calendar (Educator Members only)

Did you know?

Did you know that the Earth’s magnetic field has reversed its orientation irregularly many times over Earth’s history?

Do you know why chromosomes, DNA, and genes are important?

 

Earth and Space Science Concept of the Day

Do you know what this word or phrase means?

Allotropes
xAllotropes : Forms of an element with different structures and properties when they are in the same state - solid, liquid, gas

Click on the word to find out!

Research Highlights

Oldest Earth Mantle Reservoir Discovered

Researchers have found a primitive Earth mantle reservoir on Baffin Island in the Canadian Arctic. Geologist Matthew Jackson and his colleagues from a multi-institution collaboration report the finding--the...Read more


Windows to the Universe, a project of the National Earth Science Teachers Association, is sponsored in part is sponsored in part through grants from federal agencies (NASA and NOAA), and partnerships with affiliated organizations, including the American Geophysical Union, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Earth System Information Partnership, the American Meteorological Society, the National Center for Science Education, and TERC. The American Geophysical Union and the American Geosciences Institute are Windows to the Universe Founding Partners. NESTA welcomes new Institutional Affiliates in support of our ongoing programs, as well as collaborations on new projects. Contact NESTA for more information. NASA ESIP NCSE HHMI AGU AGI AMS NOAA