People are constantly interested in everything mysterious. That is why they explore the amazing planet Earth. It seems that mankind knows almost everything about the planet, but there are still many topical issues that need answers. In the distant future, mankind will unravel the riddle of the Universe and the origin of the Earth. Here are interesting facts about our wonderful planet.
Large liquid-water oceans cover the majority of the planet’s surface, such that the total amount of dry land is about equal to the surface area of Mars.
Like Mercury, Venus, and Mars, Earth has no ring system, but it has a large satellite, the Moon.
The length of the day is equal to 24 hours or 1440 minutes or 86,400 seconds.
Earth’s weather turns out to be the most unpredictable in the solar system.
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Ash is a tall to very tall tree usually 20–40 m in height, occasionally up to 90 m, with stem diameters of 2–3 m. The trees usually have straight stems with medium-sized crowns. Several types of ash tree are valued for their hardwood or their beauty. There are about 70 different species, or types, of ash tree. They are members of the same scientific family as olive trees, jasmines, and lilacs. Most ash trees grow in the northern half of the world. They usually need plenty of sunshine. Most ashes have a strong, straight trunk with gray bark. The green leaves are made up of several parts called leaflets. In autumn the leaves turn yellow or purple. The flowers are usually small and grow in clusters. Each seed has a papery wing shaped like a dragonfly wing.
The wood is used to make baseball bats, hockey sticks, tennis rackets, oars, furniture, tool handles, and barrels.
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When springtime comes around, bees get busy and pollen fills the air. For people who suffer from allergies, pollen seems to be a curse rather than a blessing. Some plants produce astronomical quantities of pollen. Just one birch catkin, for example, may release over five million grains of pollen, and a typical birch tree will likely have several thousand catkins. For people who suffer from hay fever, this proliferation of pollen results in great discomfort.
But our lives depend on this unique dust. Pollen consists of tiny grains that are produced in the male organs of flowering and cone-bearing plants. So, plants produce pollen in order to reproduce. The female organ of a flower (the pistil) needs pollen from the male organ (the stamen) in order to be fertilized and produce fruit. Pollen grains are tiny and we can hardly see them with the unaided eye. However, under a microscope we can see that both the size and the shape are unique to each particular species. The scientists often study the pollen grains to identify plants that people cultivated centuries ago.
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Greenland is the world’s largest island most of which lies within the Arctic Circle. Its area is 2,175,600 square kilometers. Its northern tip is only 800 kilometers from the North Pole. Mountains run along the island’s east and west coasts. Gunnbjorn is the highest point (3,700 m). Greenland is almost entirely covered in ice and in some places it is more than 3000 meters thick. Deep fjords and glaciers line the coasts; in many areas the great ice sheet runs directly into the sea. The weather in Greenland is cold and may change quickly from sunshine to blizzards.
Greenland’s official name, Kalaallit Nunaat, means “land of the people.”
There are very few trees in Greenland’s tundra. Grasses, sedges, and mosslike lichens are the main plants. Only seven kinds of mammals live there. They are polar bears, musk-oxen, reindeer, arctic foxes, snow hares, ermines, and lemmings.
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Goldenrod (Solidago) is a member of Asteraceae family. The native range of goldenrod is on the territory of all the CIS countries, Western Europe, and lands of Siberia and Central Asia. It can grow on wet and flooded meadows, on rubble and stone slopes, likes sandy soils.
The name of this flower came from Latin word “solidus”, which means strong and healthy. The goldenrod has positive effect on many human organs and its properties have long been known.
The goldenrod is a perennial herb that grows to 30 to 140 centimeters high. The plant’s narrow leaves grow along the stem alternately. The yellow flowers, which are gathered in clusters of ten or more, bloom from mid-August to early November. The sweat bee and other insects pollinate the plant.
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Crows are large birds with shiny black feathers. They often live together in large families. They are known for their loud voices and their intelligence. Pet crows have even learned to imitate human speech. There are more than 20 species of crow. They look much like ravens, their close relatives. They are also related to jays and magpies.
Crows belong to songbirds. However, their calls are typically harsh sounding.
Crows are found nearly all around the world. They live in many different habitats, including forests, grasslands, deserts, steppes, farms, and urban areas. Crows eat a great variety of plants and small animals. Their natural enemies include owls, eagles, and buzzards, and they have had a long-running battle with human beings.
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A black hole is an area in space with an incredibly strong gravity. This gravity pulls in everything that gets close and nothing can escape from a black hole. Black holes have great amounts of material packed in very tightly. That’s why they are remarkably heavy for their size. They are called “black” because they are invisible. Because no one can see black holes, they are hard to find.
A black hole can be formed when a huge star uses up its fuel. The gravity crushes the star smaller and smaller, and it becomes a black hole. Scientists believe that a huge black hole lies at the center of nearly every galaxy.
The German astronomer Karl Schwarzschild predicted the existence of collapsed stellar bodies that would not emit any radiation. Such cosmic bodies were named black holes about 50 years later.
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