The earth and the Moon

The Solar System is made up of the Sun, which is a star, and the planets, which move around the Sun. There are also satellites, asteroids and comets. The planets of the Solar System The planets can be divided into two groups: Interior planets. [...]

The planet Earth is round, like a ball. We call this shape a sphere. We use imaginary lines to study it. The Earth moves in two ways. It orbits (moves around) the Sun and it rotates on an imaginary line called an axis. [...]

Rotation: days and nights The Earth's rotation causes day and night. The Earth takes 24 hours to complete one rotation. This is one day and one night. The Sun illuminates one half of the Earth's surface at a time. [...]

The Moon is the Earth's only natural satellite. It is 385000 km from the Earth and 49 times smaller than the Earth. We can see the Moon because it reflects the light from the Sun. Temperatures on the Moon vary between 107°C and –173°C. [...]

Globes and maps We use globes and maps to show what the Earth looks like. Globes show the Earth as a sphere. They show the true shape of the Earth and its tilt. They also show the positions of oceans and continents. [...]

We live on the planet Earth. The Earth has one satellite. It is called the Moon. The Earth and the Moon are part of the Solar System. The Solar System is made up of the Sun, the planets, satellites and other objects that move around the Sun. [...]

Understand a map The map below is a flat representation of the Earth's surface. The ratio of the distances on the map to the real distances is called the scale. We can see the scale in the top right-hand corner. [...]

We live on the planet Earth. The Earth has one satellite. It is called the Moon. The Earth and the Moon are part of the Solar System. The Solar System is made up of the Sun, the planets, satellites and other objects that move around the Sun. [...]