A parsec isthe distance fromtheSun to an astronomical object that has a parallax angle of one arcsecond (not to scale). Earthisthe third planet fromtheSun, and the fifth largest planet.Earthisthe only planet in the solar system whose English name does not come from Greek or Roman mythology. The name was taken from Old English and Germanic. It simply means "the ground." Earth orbits around thesun at a speed of 67,100 miles per hour (30 kilometers per second). That's the equivalent of traveling from Rio de Janeiro to Cape Town (or alternatively London to New York) in about 3 minutes. Other than in its orbit, how else is Earth moving through space? Earth is also unique in terms of monikers.Earth rotates on its axis every 23.9 hours, defining day and night for surface dwellers. This axis of rotation is tilted 23.4 degrees awayfromthe plane of Earth's orbit around thesun, giving us seasons. Not just, you know, very, very far, but in terms of an actual, measurable distance? When you're calculating, how do you decide which location on Earth to measure from? In fact, theEarth is warmer when at its furthest point awayfromtheSun. What should be a simple straightforward fact taught in primary school Geography class has become a misunderstanding so widespread that studies have been conducted into how prevalent it is, and how... It’s not hard to look beyond the Moon and further back in time. TheSun is about 150 million km away, so we see it as it was about 8 minutes ago. Earth is characterized as the largest terrestrial planet, unique in its ability to support life due to its atmosphere and water.