Planet Earth

Planet Earth Earth is our home planet. It is the only planet in the solar system where everything works together to support life.

Come and sample these internet sites about the earth and complete the activities for each one to find out more about the third rock from the sun.

Planets Home Page
http://pds.jpl.nasa.gov/planets/welcome/earth.htm

What is the diameter of the earth? This figure is given in kilometers. Convert this to miles.
How long is earth's rotation period?
How long is earth's revolution period?
What is the mean (average) temperature of the surface of the earth? This figure is given in Kelvin (K). Convert this to Fahrenheit.
What is the maximum temperature of the surface of the earth? This figure is given in Kelvin (K). Convert this to Fahrenheit.
What is the minimum temperature of the surface of the earth? This figure is given in Kelvin (K). Convert this to Fahrenheit.
What is the highest point on the surface of the earth? Go to Altitude of the Highest Point on Earth and write 5 additional facts about this highest place on earth.

The Nine Planets - Earth
http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/earth.html

Where does the earth rank in terms of size among the other 9 planets?
How long is the earth's orbit around the sun? This figure is in kilometers. Convert this to miles.
During what century was it first understood that the earth was just another planet and not the center of the universe?

Earth Statistics
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/earth/statistics.html&sw=true

The earth does not orbit the sun in a totally upright postion. The earth tilts. The tilt of the earth is responsible for the seasons that we experience on the earth. What is the angle in degrees of the tilt of the earth's axis?

Earth's Atmosphere
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/earth/Atmosphere/overview.html&sw=true

How does the atmosphere protect the earth?
What is the percentage of each of the gases that make up the earth's atmosphere?
How does the ozone layer benefit us?
What is the greenhouse effect?
What are the 5 layers of the atmosphere?

Earth Myth and Culture
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/mythology/planets/Earth/earth.html&sw=true

The mythology of most ancient cultures included a god or goddess of the earth. For the Egyptians, it was Geb. For the Greeks, it was Gaea. Select 3 of the earth dieties on this page and write a short paragraph about each one.

Creation Myths
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/mythology/planets/Earth/earth_aspects.html&sw=true

There are 2 creation myths represented here--a Chinese myth and a Pawnee myth. Select one a write a short paragraph summarizing how these ancient cultures thought that the earth was created.

Select "Earth Landscapes" from the main menu to find images of the earth taken from space.

Choose "atoll" from the pull down menu and click on "Start Search". "Find a photo (taken from space) of Christmas Island which is an atoll in the Pacific Ocean. Write 5 facts about Christmas Island.
Choose "desert" from the pulldown menu and then click on "Start Search". Find a photo of the Great Salt Lake. Don't choose the very 1st selection called "Area South of the Great Salt Lake". Scroll down further and find a photo from space entitled "Great Salt Lake". Write 5 facts about the Great Salt Lake.
Choose "volcano" from the pull down menu and then click on "Start Search". Find a photo of Mt. St. Helens. Scroll down until you find the Mt. St. Helens image. Write 5 facts about Mt. St. Helens.

Planetary Linguistics
http://www.seds.org/nineplanets/nineplanets/days.html

Earth News
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/headline_universe/earth_science/earth_science.html&sw=true

This site has current earth and space articles. Select one of the articles and write a short paragraph summarizing it. The article from 8-10-99 has interesting information about viewing meteor showers from earth. The article from 5-10-99 indicates that scientist think that ancient Mars may have been similar to our earth.

Savage Earth
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/savageearth/hellscrust/index.html

According to this site, "Although it feels solid and hard beneath our feet, the outer surface of the Earth is a thin crust of fragile rock, fractured like the cracked shell of an egg." What are the "pieces of the shell" called and how many major ones are there? What do these pieces float on? What do these pieces do at their boundaries? Why are these boundaries the most geologically active regions on earth?
What is the outer layer of the earth called?
Where in the world is the crust of the earth the thinnest?
The part immediately below the crust is called the mantle. Together, the crust and the upper part of the mantle make up what?
What is the asthenosphere?
Approximately how thick is the earth's mantle? What is the mantle like?
Approximately how thick is the outer core? What is it made up of?
What is the solid core at the center of the earth made of?
According to this site, what is the part of the earth that "drives what happens on the rest of the Earth"?
What is mantle convection?
In a single year, about how much energy is released through earthquakes? In terms of the energy released from bombs, what is this amount equal to?
When upwelling hot magma breaks through the crust and reachs the surface of the earth, what happens?
What is the subduction zone that surrounds the basin of the Pacific Ocean called?
If magma rises below the ocean, what does it form? If magma rises under land, what does it form?
How were the Hawaiin islands formed?

Author: LINDA MOSBACKER - Email linda.mosbacker@slc.k12.ut.us