10 Facts About Our Planet You Didn't Learn In School

We seem to think we know pretty much all there is to know about our Earth that nothing can surprise us at this point. You’ll be amazed when you find out how much you have yet to learn about our home planet: let’s start with 10 little-known earthly facts. You might know that it’s called “the blue planet”, but did you know that scientists say Earth was originally a different color? Or that the Moon isn’t Earth’s only satellite?
The magnetic field is vital for Earth because it protects the planet from the impact of solar winds. We think of our planet’s magnetic field as something constant and stable, but the truth is that it’s changing. James Ross, an explorer and British naval officer, pinpointed the northern magnetic pole for the first time in 1831. In 1904, Roald Amundsen, a polar regions explorer from Norway, reached the north magnetic pole again and was surprised to find that it had shifted 31 miles since Ross's discovery.
Earth, despite common belief, isn't perfectly round. It’s more like a squashed sphere. So its mass is irregular and differs in various places, which causes “wobbles” of gravity in different areas of the planet.
A smaller celestial body about 750 miles wide orbited Earth like a second moon. It most likely crashed into our main satellite later on. Scientists also don't rule out the probability that one day Earth will get another satellite.
If all the gold found inside the Earth could be extracted, it would be enough to cover the entire surface of the planet in a 2-foot layer of gold. And if we gave everyone an equal piece, each one of Earth’s inhabitants would get 9 pounds of this treasure.
Magma lurking below the surface of crater lakes emits carbon dioxide into the waters of the lakes. This carbon dioxide builds up in a thick layer at the bottom of the lakes until pressure gives way, and it’s released in an explosion.
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TIMESTAMPS
The Moon is probably a chunk of the Earth. 0:40
The Earth’s magnetic field is changing. 1:21
Gravity isn’t the same everywhere on the planet. 2:53
Earth had and still might have one more moon. 4:09
There are “moonquakes” on the Moon. 5:13
Our planet is covered in gold. 5:54
Earth used to be purple. 6:39
The tallest mountain on the planet isn’t what you think. 7:18
Earth has exploding lakes. 8:22
Earth is home to the most powerful volcanic eruption ever. 9:15
SUMMARY
-About 4 billion years ago, a gigantic space rock the size of Mars collided with our planet. As a result, a huge chunk of the Earth broke away and later became our satellite, the Moon.
-Researchers say that since the 19th century, the northern magnetic pole has shifted about 685 miles, moving northwestward across the Canadian Arctic.
-One of the gravitational anomalies is found in Canada’s Hudson Bay, where gravity is much weaker than anywhere else on the planet.
-Some scientists believe that our planet used to have an additional satellite that crashed into our main satellite later on.
-Earthquakes on the Moon are much deeper and closer to the center of our satellite, about halfway between the surface and the core.
-About 20 million tons of gold can be found inside our very own planet and in the seas.
-Dr. Shil DasSarma, a microbial geneticist from the University of Maryland, thinks that ancient microbes probably didn’t use chlorophyll but other molecules to process sunlight and our planet used to be purple.
-If measured from the very bottom on the ocean floor to the peak, Mauna Kea is 33,000 feet tall, making it, technically, the tallest mountain on the planet.
-Nyos, Monoun, and Kivu are crater lakes in Africa that are located over volcanic earth.
-The most powerful eruption ever recorded happened in April 1815 in Indonesia. It was ranked a 7 (or “super-colossal”) on the Volcanic Explosivity Index.
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