Which celestial body is known as the blue planet

By: Diana Hannikainen October 15, We examine circumstances and expectations for the current apparition of Comet Leonard, which may become the year's brightest comet. By: Bob King October 13, Catch one of the most active small bodies in the solar system during a rare superoutburst. By: Bob King September 29, See nine unique open clusters in Cassiopeia while barely moving your telescope. If you like mixing comets with the quietude of observing in the small hours, September opens with five fuzzy vagabonds just waiting for a visit.

By: Bob King September 1, Celestial Objects to Observe. Gamma Cassiopeia may lack a proper name, but the middle star of the "W"-shape constellation is worth finding on the sky. By: Daniel Johnson August 31, Jupiter is at opposition on August 19th. If we take the long view — 12 years long — we can watch Jupiter's oppositions as it passes through the zodiac constellations. By: Scott Levine August 20, If skies are clear this weekend, you'll see the full Moon. And not just any old full Moon, but the Blue Moon.

By: Diana Hannikainen August 19, The recurrent nova RS Ophiuchi just went into outburst — its first burst in 15 years — and it's bright enough to see with the naked eye.

By: Bob King August 9, For many, smoke from wildfires has transformed summer nights, blotting out stars and familiar deep-sky sights. But through it all double stars keep on shining.

Like the other planets in the solar system, ours also spins, or rotates. One complete rotation takes almost 24 hours. This explains the alternation of day and night. In fact, the Sun is not moving at all; it is Earth that is moving.

Earth makes a complete rotation in almost 24 hours. Because Earth rotates while it travels around the Sun, every part of the planet gets its share of daylight and darkness. It is daytime on the side of Earth that is facing the Sun, and nighttime on the opposite side.

At this rate, in 5 billion years an Earth day will last 48 hours instead of 24 hours. It will be twice as long! Seasons are caused by the changing amounts of solar energy that strike a part of Earth at different times of the year. Since Earth is slightly tilted to one side as it travels around the Sun, some areas of the planet receive more energy in the form of light and heat than others. These areas experience colder temperatures.

A planet does not have its own light. The earth is a planet. Satellite: Some celestial bodies keep on moving around a planet. They are called satellites.

The moon is the only satellite of the earth. Now-a-days, there are many man-made satellites in the sky. These satellites are used for different purposes. The Solar System is formed by the Sun, eight planets, some other celestial bodies, asteroids and meteorites. The sun is at the centre of the solar system. It is huge in size. It is made of hot gases. The sun provides the pulling force which binds the members of the solar family.

The sun is very hot but we do not feel its heat because we are very far away from the sun. In fact, the distance between the sun and the earth is million km. Light travels at the rate of , km per second. The sunlight takes about 8 minutes to travel between the sun and the earth. The National Geographic Channel held a contest for mnemonics in This mnemonics also includes the dwarf planets Pluto Eric and Ceres.

Till , Pluto was also considered as a planet. Ceres is another example of dwarf planet. The earth is the third planet from the sun. It is the fifth largest planet in the solar system. The earth is spherical in shape and is flattened at top and bottom.

Such a shape is called geoid or earth-like shape. Earth is the only known planet where life exists. Earth has just the right temperature. It is neither too hot nor too cold. Water and air are present on earth. Water is essential for living beings. Oxygen is present in air and oxygen is also essential for living beings. Thus, right conditions are present on the earth to support life.

Due to this, the earth appears blue when seen from the space. The moon is our nearest neighbor in the solar system. It is the only satellite of the earth. Moon is , km from the earth. Since it is so near from us, hence it appears so big; compared to any other celestial body.