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The Earth

While the Earth is orbiting the Sun, it is also spinning about its own axis, which is an imaginary line through the center of the Earth from the North Pole to the South Pole. It takes the Earth 24 hours to complete one rotation about its axis, which is what we call a day. The side of the Earth facing the Sun receives light and is in day, but the opposite side is dark and is in night. The Earth spins toward the East (counterclockwise) when viewed from above the North Pole.

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Important Facts About the Earth:

1) The Earth rotates counterclockwise towards the East around its axis, making one complete revolution in 24 hours.

2) The Earth can be modeled as a sphere with a radius of 4000 miles.

3) The distance around the equator (or circumference of the Earth) is approximately 25,000 miles.

4) Each degree of longitude at the equator corresponds to 69 miles.

5) Since the Earth rotates 360° in 24 hours, its rotation rate is 15° per hour.


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