The Earth’s magnetic field is also known as ‘the geomagnetic field’. Since past, our ancestors have used magnetic compasses to find their way around the Earth. Magnetic compasses have a needle made up of magnet that lines up with the Earth’s magnetic field, which is aligned north-south wherever you are on the Earth. This geomagnetic […]
Revolution is the movement of the Earth around the Sun in its orbit. The revolution is commonly known as the annual cycle of the Earth. The revolution of the Earth takes place from west to east, same as the rotation. The Earth takes 365.25 days to complete one revolution and this period is referred as
The Earth rotates around an imaginary line, called the axis. This axis runs through the North and the South Pole. If the rotating Earth is viewed from the North Pole, it seems rotating from west to east that is counter-clockwise. Due to this movement or rotation of the Earth from west to east, we experience
The Earth is not a static body. It continuously revolves around the Sun in an elliptical path. Its movement affects our daily life, crucially. Two important movements of the Earth that affect our life are: rotation of the Earth around its axis and revolution of the Earth around the Sun. It takes the Earth about
The troposphere is the closest and lowest layer of the Earth’s atmosphere. It is the layer where all weather changes take place and cloud formation occurs. The troposphere lies between the Earth (lithosphere) and the stratosphere (10-18 km above the sea level). This layer makes about 70-80% of the total atmosphere. This layer carries the
Earth’s Atmosphere: Planet Earth is surrounded by a thick blanket of air, called the atmosphere. This atmosphere is composed of about 20 different gases, but oxygen and nitrogen account for about 90% in dry air. The atmosphere was formed when the hot surface of the Earth began to cool. As the molten rocky mass of
Australia is the smallest continent on the Earth. It is the only country that is wholly a continent. It is surrounded by the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Arafura and Timor Seas separate Australia from Asian continent. Its central area is mainly desert. Australia is known as the last of lands because it was the last
Europe is the second smallest continent on Earth. Europe and Asia share the same landmass. But because this landmass is so large, geographers have separated this huge landmass into two continents. Surface area: 9,938,000 km2 Location: Northern hemisphere Major countries: Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia, Germany, Poland, Spain, France, Italy, Turkey, Hungary and BulgariaImportant physical features:
Antarctica is the fifth largest continent on the Earth. About 98-99% of the landmass of this continent is covered with an ice sheet. It is the coldest, driest and the windiest continent on the Earth. Only a few species of plants and animals that can adapt to their environment can survive here. No nation owns
South America is the fourth largest continent on the Earth. It lies between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. It has the world’s largest forest area. This continent looks like a triangle on the world map. Surface area: 17,819,000 km2 Location: Western hemisphere, south of Central America Major countries: Argentina, Chile, Columbia, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil and
North America is the third largest continent on the Earth. It has some of the oldest rocks on the Earth. The Panama Canal, located in Central America, connects the Atlantic and the Pacific Ocean. Surface area: 24,256,000 km2 Location: It is located in the Northern and Western hemispheres, between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans Major
Africa is the second largest continent on the Earth. Africa has a diverse range of mineral resources, including some of the world’s largest reserves of fossil fuels, metallic ores and gems and precious metals. Surface area: 30,365,000 km2 Location: Surrounds the equatorial line and the Eastern hemisphere Major countries: Algeria, Congo, Kenya, Namibia, Sudan and
Asia is the largest, most populated and diverse continent on the Earth. It occupies one-third of the land surface of the Earth. Surface area: 44,579,000 km2 Location: Extends in both Northern and Southern hemispheres Major countries: China, Russia, India, Kazakhistan, Korea and Japan Important physical features: ♦ Mount Everest (elevation above sea level 29,035 feet)
Continents are large pieces of land on the Earth that are separated by oceans, seas, rivers and mountains. The formation of continents began in the early Mesozoic era. About 270 million years ago, most of the dry land on the Earth was joined together. It was known as the ‘supercontinent’. The giant ocean surrounding this
The lines where the tectonic plates meet are called the plate boundaries. There are three types of plate boundaries: divergent, convergent and transform. Divergent boundaries occur when the tectonic plates move apart. The convergent boundaries form when the tectonic plates move towards one another. The transform boundaries form when the tectonic plates move sideways in