Planet · Terrestrial planet

Earth

Solar System

Scientific overview

Earth is a terrestrial planet in orbit around The Sun, at a mean distance of 149.6 million km from the Sun.

Physical characteristics

Mass	5.97 ×10²⁴ kg
Diameter	12,756 km
Radius	6,378 km
Density	5.514 g/cm³
Surface gravity	9.8 m/s²
Escape velocity	11.2 km/s
Rotation period	23.9 h
Mean temperature	15 °C

Orbit

Distance from Sun	149.6 million km (1 AU)
Orbital period	1 years
Perihelion	147.1 million km
Aphelion	152.1 million km
Eccentricity	0.017
Orbital inclination	0°
Axial tilt	23.4°
Orbital velocity	29.8 km/s

Moons (1)

The Moon1,737.5 km

Sources

Facts on this topic will be cited from these primary and reference sources.

NASANational Aeronautics and Space Administration
Mission data, planetary science, space telescopes, and public-domain imagery.
Most NASA-produced imagery is in the public domain; individual items are checked for usage terms before publication.
NASA JPLJet Propulsion Laboratory / Solar System Dynamics
Orbital data, ephemerides, and small-body parameters for planets, asteroids, and comets.

Quick facts

Type: Terrestrial planet
System: The Sun
Moons: 1

Provenance & sources

review 2026.1

Asteria Scientific Review Process · verification: sourced · accurate

High evidenceconfirmed
Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only body known to host life; about 71% of its surface is covered by liquid water.
Source: NASA (NSSDCA) — NASA Planetary Fact Sheet · Public domain (US Government work)
- NASA Planetary Fact Sheet, Planetary Fact Sheet

Reviewed by the internal Asteria Scientific Review Process — not an external institutional review. See the evidence framework and authority dashboard.

Scientific citations

Real, source-backed references — primary papers first, then datasets and institutional sources. Formatted through the citation engine; nothing is fabricated.

DatasetEarth Fact Sheet

NASA Goddard — NSSDCA

Cite (APA / BibTeX)

NASA Goddard — NSSDCA (n.d.). Earth Fact Sheet. NASA Goddard — NSSDCA. https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/factsheet/earthfact.html

@misc{cite:factsheet-planet-earth,
  title        = {Earth Fact Sheet},
  organization = {NASA Goddard — NSSDCA},
  year         = {n.d.},
  url          = {https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/factsheet/earthfact.html},
  note         = {Physical and orbital parameters for Earth.}
}

Institutional pageEarth — NASA Solar System Exploration

NASA

Cite (APA / BibTeX)

NASA (n.d.). Earth — NASA Solar System Exploration. NASA. https://science.nasa.gov/

@misc{cite:nasa-planet-earth,
  title        = {Earth — NASA Solar System Exploration},
  organization = {NASA},
  year         = {n.d.},
  url          = {https://science.nasa.gov/},
  note         = {NASA overview of Earth.}
}

Quality & authority

63%

Reviewed

Completeness: Complete
Source coverage: Complete
Citation coverage: Complete
Relationship coverage: Complete
Review coverage: Complete
Image coverage: None

Data from the NASA Planetary Fact Sheet & JPL (public domain). See source quality.

Loading…

Sources

Facts on this topic will be cited from these primary and reference sources.

NASANational Aeronautics and Space Administration

Mission data, planetary science, space telescopes, and public-domain imagery.

Most NASA-produced imagery is in the public domain; individual items are checked for usage terms before publication.

NASA JPLJet Propulsion Laboratory / Solar System Dynamics

Orbital data, ephemerides, and small-body parameters for planets, asteroids, and comets.

NASA Goddard — NSSDCA (n.d.). Earth Fact Sheet. NASA Goddard — NSSDCA. https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/factsheet/earthfact.html @misc{cite:factsheet-planet-earth, title = {Earth Fact Sheet}, organization = {NASA Goddard — NSSDCA}, year = {n.d.}, url = {https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/factsheet/earthfact.html}, note = {Physical and orbital parameters for Earth.} }

NASA (n.d.). Earth — NASA Solar System Exploration. NASA. https://science.nasa.gov/ @misc{cite:nasa-planet-earth, title = {Earth — NASA Solar System Exploration}, organization = {NASA}, year = {n.d.}, url = {https://science.nasa.gov/}, note = {NASA overview of Earth.} }