EARTH – WHAT NASA SEES

Earth Day quiz for space fans: What makes our planet unique? As of Earth Day 2015, NASA has discovered more than 1,800 planets outside of our solar system. Do you know what makes Earth different from so many other planets?

Jeff Ward-Bailey, April 22, (Christian Science Monitor)

“…[I]t is Earth’s complexity that challenges scientists, NASA recently wrote, as] they seek to figure out how the whole planet works as a system…So far, scientists have been able not only to get a better picture of our home planet’s workings, but also to identify more than 1,800 planets outside of our solar system [via data collected with the orbiting Kepler telescope]. About two dozen of these planets are considered ‘Earth-like,’ meaning they could have liquid water and atmospheres similar to Earth’s…Most of the planets NASA has identified so far are hundreds of light-years away – simply too distant to be able to study in depth. But a few are close enough that scientists could collect data about their atmospheres and compositions…NASA’s Earth Day 2015 celebration is called ‘No Place Like Home,’ and while the Earth is uniquely suited to supporting human life, there are almost certainly other planets similar to our own out there…” click here for more

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