Earth is the third planet from the Sun and largest of the terrestrial planets. Earth is the only planet in the solar system not named after a mythological being. Instead, its name is derived from the Old English word "ertha" and the Anglo-Saxon word "erda" which means ground or soil.
Here are some cool facts about earth-
1. Earth is the most dense planet in the solar system. The density of Earth differs in each part of the planet – the core, for example, is denser than the Earth’s crust – but the average density of the planet is around 5.52 grams per cubic centimetre.
2. A year on Earth isn’t 365 days
It’s actually 365.2564 days. It’s this extra .2564 days that creates the need for leap years. That’s why we tack on an extra day in February every year divisible by 4 – 2004, 2008, etc – unless it’s divisible by 100 (1900, 2100, etc)… unless it’s divisible by 400 (1600, 2000, etc).
3. If you drilled a tunnel straight through the Earth and jumped in, it would take you about 42 minutes to get to the other side.
4. The first life on Earth developed in the oceans through a process called abiogenesis or biopoiesis. This is a natural process in which life grows from non-living matter like simple organic compounds.
5. There are more living organisms in a teaspoonful of soil than there are people on earth.
6. Our galaxy probably contains at least 2 billion planets like Earth.
7. The highest point found on Earth is Mount Everest which reaches a height of 8.8 km.
8. The lowest point on Earth is called Challenger Deep and at 10.9 km below sea level, it is further than the peak of Mount Everest.
9. Earth has a powerful magnetic field:
This phenomenon is caused by the nickel-iron core of the planet, coupled with its rapid rotation. This field protects the Earth from the effects of solar wind.
10. There are about 7500,000,000,000,000,000 grains of sand on Earth.
Sources:
http://space-facts.com
http://www.factslides.com
http://theplanets.org