confusiong and amazing things about earth and space

earth:


the Antartic notothenia fish has a protein in its blood that acts like antifreeze and stops the fish freezing in icy sea.

The USA uses 29% of the world's petrol and 33% of the world's electricity.

The industrial complex of Cubatao in Brazil is known as the Valley of Death because its pollution has destroyed the trees and rivers nearby.

Tibet is the highest country in the world. Its average height above sea level is 4500 meters.

Some of the oldest mountains in the world are the Highlands in Scotland. They are estimated to be about 400 million years old. 


space:


The ancient Greeks called our galaxy the Milky Way because they thought it was made from drops of milk from the breasts of the Greek goddess Hera.

Yuri Gagarin survived the first manned spaceflight but was killed in a plane crash seven years later.

Astronauts become a little taller in space. There is less gravity, so their bones are less squashed together.

Astronauts' footprints and Lunar Rover tyre tracks will stay on the moon for millions of years as there is no wind to blow them away.

About 1500 stars are visible at night with the naked eye in a clear, dark sky. There are 88 constellations altogether. The smallest star measures about 1700 km across. It is a white dwarf called LP 327-16.

The first object to orbit earth was Sputnik 1, launched by the USSR in October 1957. 


what is a space station 


A space station (or orbital station) is a spacecraft capable of supporting a crew which is designed to remain in space (most commonly in low earth orbit) for an extended period of time, and to which other spacecraft can dock.