What is the earth?
This book is all about Earth and the incredible things that happen on our planet – from way out in space to deep under the surface.
The Earth is our home and there’s so much more going on than you might think when you look at the ground beneath your feet.
cover die cut
It’s important that we look after our special planet so that it stays a healthy place for humans and animals to live. The Earth takes care of us in all kinds of ways, so we need to take care of it too.
Atmosphere and weather
Earth is wrapped in a protective layer of gas called the atmosphere.
Land features
There are many different types of land, or habitats, around the planet.
Animal life
Groups of animals live together in different habitats.
Human life
Our planet is home to billions of people too.
Water world
Without water, there would be no life on Earth.
Super soil
Soil is one of the most important things on our planet.
Inside the Earth
Under the surface, Earth is divided into different layers.
Turn the page to see how our planet works!
Earth in space
A planet is a huge round object made of rock, gas and ice. Our solar system is made up of eight planets that travel around a massive star called the sun, plus many smaller moons and millions of even smaller space rocks called asteroids and comets.
The sun gives out light and heat, so when part of the Earth faces the sun, it’s daytime and when it’s turned away, it’s night-time.
Night Moon Sun Day Solar system
Earth is the fifth-largest planet in our solar system. It’s the only planet where animals and plants can survive because it’s not too hot or cold and there’s a lot of water on the surface.
Earth is nearly 150 million kilometres away from the sun and the sun is about one million times bigger than the Earth!
It takes Earth 365 days, a whole year, to travel around the sun. This is called Earth’s orbit. As it travels, the Earth spins on an imaginary tilted line called an axis.
Orbit
It was formed almost 4.6 billion years ago! Axis NeptuneUranus Saturn Jupiter Mars Earth VenusMercury Sun
Exosphere
Thermosphere
Mesosphere
Stratosphere
Troposphere
What’s the weather?
In the troposphere, aeroplanes fly, clouds are formed and all of the Earth’s weather takes place.
Weather conditions change all the time and from place to place, and the sun plays a big part in this.
It’s sunny when the sun warms up the air so it’s dry and bright. It’s cloudy when the sun warms up the water from lakes, rivers and the sea. Tiny water droplets rise into the air to form clouds .
Weather can be windy, foggy or stormy. There can suddenly be extreme conditions like a hurricane or heatwave, or you might even see a rainbow!
It’s rainy when these water droplets get bigger and become too heavy to float. They fall to the ground as raindrops. It’s snowy when the clouds get so cold the water droplets turn into ice crystals and fall as snowflakes.
2 1 4 3
1. Bird
2. Clouds
3. Aeroplane
4. Hot Air Balloon
Land features
Earth’s outermost layer is broken up into huge pieces called tectonic plates. These pieces move around on the softer, hotter layers of the planet below and their edges are marked by mountains, earthquakes and volcanoes.
Islands are pieces of land surrounded by water formed by volcanoes, erosion or rising sea levels.
A volcano erupts when magma is forced upwards
Volcanoes are made when a mixture of hot gas, ash and melted rock – called magma – bubbles up from a crack in the Earth’s surface. Red-hot lava flows out like a river and hardens. Most of Earth’s volcanoes are hidden deep under the ocean.
Earthquakes happen deep underground when the Earth’s plates slide against one another. This happens every day and sometimes the shock waves shake the ground or make waves called tsunami.
Mountains rise from Earth’s surface over millions of years. They are formed by the movement of Earth’s tectonic plates.
1 3 2
1. Volcano
2. Mountain
3. Island
Oceanic plate (under oceans) Continental plate (under land)
