Earth Facts

Human Population of the Earth: 7,039,191,305 (estimated as of Sept. 14, 2012)

World Population Growth: 1.092% - 2009 estimate (this means at the current rate of growth, the earth's population will double in about 64 years)

Countries of the World: 196

Earth's Circumference at the Equator: 24,901.55 miles (40,075.16 km)

Earth's Circumference Between the North and South Poles: 24,859.82 miles (40,008 km)

Earth's Diameter at the Equator: 7,926.28 miles (12,756.1 km)

Earth's Diameter at the Poles: 7,899.80 miles (12,713.5 km)

Average Distance from the Earth to the Sun: 93,020,000 miles (149,669,180 km)

Average Distance from the Earth to the Moon: 238,857 miles (384,403.1 km)

Highest Elevation on Earth - Mt. Everest, Asia: 29,035 feet (8850 m)

Tallest Mountain on Earth from Base to Peak - Mauna Kea, Hawaii: 33,480 feet (rising to 13,796 feet above sea level) (10204 m; 4205 m)

Point Farthest From the Center of the Earth - The peak of the volcano Chimborazo in Ecuador at 20,561 feet (6267 m) is farthest from the center of the earth due to its location near the equator and the oblateness of the Earth.

Lowest Elevation on Land - Dead Sea: 1369 feet below sea level (417.27 m)

Deepest Point in the Ocean - Challenger Deep, Mariana Trench, Western Pacific Ocean: 35,840 feet 
(10924 m)
Highest Temperature Recorded: 134°F (56.7°C) - Greenland Ranch in Death Valley, California, July 10, 1913

Lowest Temperature Recorded: -128.5°F (-89.2°C) - Vostok, Antarctica, July 21, 1983

Water vs. Land: 70.8% Water, 29.2% Land

Age of the Earth: 4.5 to 4.6 billion years

Atmosphere Content: 77% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and traces of argon, carbon dioxide and water

Rotation on Axis: 23 hours and 56 minutes and 04.09053 seconds. But, it takes an additional four minutes for the earth to revolve to the same position as the day before relative to the sun (i.e. 24 hours).

Revolution around Sun: 365.2425 days

Chemical Composition of the Earth: 34.6% Iron, 29.5% Oxygen, 15.2% Silicon, 12.7% Magnesium, 2.4% Nickel, 1.9% Sulfur, and 0.05% Titanium

Earth is gradually slowing down. Every few years, an extra second is added to make up for lost time. Millions of years ago, a day on Earth will have been 20 hours long. It is believed that, in millions of years time, a day on Earth will be 27 hours long.

The centre of the Earth, its core, is molten. This means that it is liquid rock which sometimes erupts onto the surface through volcanic eruptions. This core is 7,500°c, hotter than the surface of the Sun! 

From a distance, Earth would be the brightest of the planets. This is because sunlight is reflected off the planet's water.