Key facts
- Category
- Planets
- Object class
- Terrestrial planet
- Composition
- Silicate rock and iron core
- Temperature
- ~288 K mean surface
Earth
12,742 kmdiameter
Details
Earth is the largest of the four rocky planets and the only world known to host life. Liquid water has covered most of its surface for billions of years, shaping both its geology and its atmosphere.
Ocean covers about 71 percent of Earth's surface, while moving tectonic plates continually rebuild its continents and seafloor. The atmosphere, ocean, rock, and living organisms exchange water, carbon, and other material rather than operating as separate layers.
Earth is the only world known to host life. That makes it the reference case when researchers ask how oceans, atmospheres, geology, and biology might interact on other planets.
Links
- Editorial guides
- Universe journey
- Earth
- Preset views
- Wikipedia
- Earth on Wikipedia
Size neighbors
Objects near Earth on the scale
Sources
References for Earth
Measurements and descriptive context are compiled by the Scale of Space team from the references below. If you find an error, please let us know.
- Earth — Wikipedia
- Visual reference: Wikimedia Commons (NASA / Apollo 17 crew, Public domain)
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About
Scale of Space is a scroll-based journey through the universe, placing objects on a single logarithmic scale so you can compare size across an unbroken range.
Guides explain selected parts of that range, while focused views filter the objects by subject.