Third planetTerrestrial planet
The only planet known to harbour life, with liquid water oceans covering 71% of its surface and an atmosphere rich in the oxygen that life created.
Key facts
Mass
5.97×10²⁴ kg
baseline
Radius
6,371 km
baseline
Gravity
9.81 m/s²
baseline
Temp
15°C
habitable
Orbit & rotation
149.6 M km
from the Sun
1 AU
365.25 days
orbital period
orbital year
24 hours
length of day
23h 56m sidereal
Sunlight reaches here in 8.3 min
travelling at 299,792 km/s
Compared to Earth
Radius
1× Earth
Radius relative to Earth.
Surface gravity9.81 m/s²
Blue line = Earth · scale 0–25 m/s²
A 70 kg person weighs70 kghere
Temperature
+15°Cmean surface
Pluto −230°Earth +15°Venus +465°
Atmosphere
Nitrogen78%
Oxygen21%
Argon + other1%
Moons & rings
Notable
- 71% of the surface is covered by liquid water.
- Its magnetic field shields us from harmful solar radiation.
- The only planet not named after a Greek or Roman deity.
-
Discovery
Our home world
Missions & exploration
1957
Sputnik 1OrbiterUSSR
The first artificial satellite - the dawn of the Space Age.
1961
Vostok 1CrewedUSSR
Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space.
1968
Apollo 8CrewedNASA
First humans to leave Earth orbit - and the famous “Earthrise” photo.
1998
ISSCrewed15 nations
Orbital laboratory, continuously inhabited since November 2000.
Inside Earth
Crust98–100% of radius
5–70 km thin - the skin we live on
Mantle55–98% of radius
Slowly convecting rock that drives plate tectonics
Outer core19–55% of radius
Liquid iron generating our magnetic field
Inner core0–19% of radius
Solid iron, about as hot as the Sun’s surface