Planet in Profile.This spinning clod of dirt, water, and gas we live on doesn't does·n't Contraction of does not. come close to rating as the biggest, baddest planet, even in our own solar system solar system, the sun and the surrounding planets, natural satellites, dwarf planets, asteroids, meteoroids, and comets that are bound by its gravity. The sun is by far the most massive part of the solar system, containing almost 99.9% of the system's total mass. . Jupiter Jupiter, in Roman religion and mythology Jupiter, in Roman religion and mythology, the supreme god, also called Jove. Originally a sky deity associated with rain and agriculture, he developed into the great father god, prime protector of the state, is larger--1,000 Earths could fit inside it. Even on nearby Mars Mars, in Roman religion and mythology Mars, in Roman religion and mythology, god of war. In early Roman times he was a god of agriculture, but in later religion (when he was identified with the Greek Ares) he was primarily associated with war. , Mount Olympus Mount Olympus: see Cyprus; Olympic Mountains; Olympus. is 16 miles high--three times that of Everest. But for its variety of mountains, plains, oceans, and rivers, Earth remains the place to be in this solar system, producing just the right combination of oxygen, water, sunlight sunlight the actinic rays of direct sunlight are known to have disinfectant properties, to be instrumental in the production of vitamin D in the skin and to be the trigger mechanism in photosensitive dermatitis, squamous cell carcinoma of the eye in cattle and of the vulva in sheep , and land to support both algae algae (ăl`jē) [plural of Lat. alga=seaweed], a large and diverse group of primarily aquatic plantlike organisms. These organisms were previously classified as a primitive subkingdom of the plant kingdom, the thallophytes (plants that and MTV MTV in full Music Television U.S. cable television network, established in 1980 to present videos of musicians and singers performing new rock music. MTV won a wide following among rock-music fans worldwide and greatly affected the popular-music business. . [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
World's Largest Islands
ISLAND AREA (SQ MI)
Greenland 840,000
New Guinea (Indonesia, Papua New Guinea) 306,000
Borneo (Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei) 280,100
Madagascar 226,658
Baffin (Canada) 195,928
Sumatra (Indonesia) 165,000
Honshu (Japan) 87,805
Great Britain 84,200
Victoria (Canada) 83,896
Ellesmere (Canada) 75,767
World at a Glance
Total area of the Earth 197,000,000 sq. miles
(70.8% water, 29.2% land)
Equatorial circumference 24,901 miles
of the Earth
Polar circumference
of the Earth 24,855 miles
Mean distance from 93,020,000 miles
the Earth to the sun
Mean distance from 238,857 miles
the Earth to the Moon
Land use of the Earth's surface 10% arable land;
1% permanent crops;
24% meadows and
pastures; 31% forest
and woodland; 34% other
Highest elevation on Mt. Everest, Asia,
the Earth's surface 29,028 feet
Lowest elevation on 1,312 feet below sea level,
the Earth's surface shores of the Dead Sea, Asia
Greatest known 36,200 feet, Pacific Ocean
depth of an ocean
The Continents: Highest and Lowest Elevations
CONTINENT HIGHEST POINT LOCATION ELEVATION (FT)
Asia Mt. Everest Nepal/China 29,028
S. America Mt. Aconcagua Argentina 22,834
N. America Mt. McKinley U.S./Alaska 20,320
Africa Mt. Kilimanjaro Tanzania 19,340
Europe Mt. Elbrus Russia 18,510
Antarctica Vinson Massif Ellsworth Mts. 16,066
Australia Mt. Kosciusko New South Wales 7,310
CONTINENT LOWEST POINT LOCATION ELEVATION (FT)
Asia Dead Sea Israel/Jordan -1,312
Africa Lake Assal Djibouti -512
N. America Death Valley U.S./California -282
S. America Valdes Peninsula Argentina -131
Europe Caspian Sea Russia -92
Australia Lake Eyre South Australia -52
Antarctica Unknown
Major Rivers of the World
RIVER AND LOCATION LENGTH (MI)
Nile (Africa) 4,145
Amazon (South America) 4,000
Mississippi-Missouri (North America) 3,740
Yangtze (Asia) 3,720
Yenisey-Angara (Asia) 3,650
Amur-Argun (Asia) 3,590
Ob-Irtysh (Asia) 3,360
Plata-Parana (South America) 3,030
Huang (Asia) 2,903
Congo (Africa) 2,900
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