Kid's Cosmos: Facts about Earth

Field Trip to Mars, Mars Features on Earth
is a self-guided excursion to view various sites located on or near the central plateau of Washington that correlate to features found on Mars.
Included is a section on volcanoes with a page about Mount St. Helens, an active volcano that "blew its top" in 1980. Also included is information on Mars Pathfinder, earthquakes, giant floods, sand dunes, lava flows, dust devils, and geological background material. Click image or here to go to Field Trip to Mars.

Gravity and You
Your weight on Earth is determined by your mass and Earth's mass. Would you weigh more or less on the Moon?

Planet Names
Why are the planets named for Roman gods? Is there a story or myth about the sun? Click image or here for Planet Myths and Lore.

Close Encounter with Mars
Every two years or so the Sun, Earth and Mars line up. This is called an opposition. In 2003, Earth and Mars were really close.
Click image or here for Mars Opposition 2003 page. (Hubble ST image)

Are There Planets Like Earth Around Other Stars?
The first planet outside of our solar system was discovered around 51 Pegasi, a small star in the constellation Pegasus. Since then more than 100 planets have been found. For more information on how astronomers discover new planets,
click image or here NASA/JPL Planetquest.

Could the Earth and an Asteroid collide?
See what scientists know about Near-Earth Objects.

Blast off on a Planetary Scavenger Hunt!

Planetary Scavenger Hunt!
You will need to gather some facts,
compare your data and answer some questions.
Click here to blast off!

Quick Facts about the Earth
Topic	Data
Diameter	12,756.28 km
Density	5.515 g/cm³
Mass	5.976 x 10²⁴ kg
Volume	1.087 x 10¹² km³
Temperature Range	-69° C to 58° C
Atmospher	Mostly Nitrogen and Oxygen
Winds	483 km/hr
Moons	One
Average Distance from Sun	149,597,870 km
Orbital Period	1 Year, 0 Days, 0 Hours
Rotation	23 Hours 56.1 Min
Tilt	23.45°
Rings	None
Composition	Iron Core, Silicate Surface
Magnetic Field	Up to 362000 km from Surface

Click below to find out more about the Moon and the Sun:

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The Nine Planets
NASA Planet Facts

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Return to the Space Center

Can't Find It?
Ask Cosmos, the Research Robot.

Kids' Cosmos… Expanding Minds Beyond the Limits of the Universe

Explore Earth

Student Planet Facts