10 “Facts” About Earth and Space You Thought Were True But Science Proved They’re False

If you’re a space maniac who spends every spare time reading obsessively about the space and Earth, you’ll love this article. You’ve probably read and heart many facts about the space but sometimes those facts are proven to be absolutely wrong.

Here are the 10 facts about Earth and space that are proven to be wrong:

1. A nuclear weapon can destroy an asteroid

It’s not a good idea to use a nuclear weapon on an asteroid, if you want to save the Earth. The blast will only break the asteroid to smaller pieces and cause even more damage.

On the other hand, some scientists claim that a designed nuclear attack can vaporize some of the rock and push the asteroid on another course.

2. The sun is yellow

Thought the sun is yellow? Well, you’ve been wrong your whole life.

The sun’s light is actually white. The Earth’s atmosphere makes the sun appear yellow and the sky appears blue.

3. The Great Wall of China is the only visible man-made structure from space

It all depends on where your space starts.

250 miles up, from the International Space Station you see the Great Wall and many others man-made structures.

If you’re looking from the Moon, you can’t see anything at all.

4. Going into space will make you weightless

According to many scientists, space begins 62 miles up, where the atmosphere is a vacuum.

Going past this point, won’t make you weightless.

If you’re in an accelerating rocket, you would feel the Earth’s gravity. You’d feel weightless only when you start falling.

To orbit means to fall forever around that object, just like the Moon around the Earth, the solar system around the Milky Way, the Earth around the sun…

5. Astrology can predict your future and personality

It would be great to take a glimpse into our future based on the planets, sun and moon.

Unfortunately, there is no scientific evidence that the future can be predicted by astrological sign. Reality is that astrological predictions are the same as chance.

6. The Earth is a perfect sphere

The Earth is actually spheroid, an oblong 3D shape that bulges at the equator and slightly flattened at the poles.

The reason why the Earth has this shape is that it rotates. The Earth’s rotational speed at the equator is 1.037 mph. Going north, it slows down.

Unfortunately, scientists claim that the bulge is growing and that’s all caused by the melting glaciers and climate changes.

7. There is a “dark side” of the moon

It might look like the moon has a dark side but the moon actually goes through the same lunar phases as the near side. When we see a new and dark moon, it means that there’s a full moon on the far side.

8. The moon is pretty close to the Earth

It’s strange how the moon seems so close sometimes. Like you can just reach out and grab it.

Reality is that the moon orbits 239.000 miles from the Earth. It would take 17 days to travel to the moon if you’re on a Boeing 747, travelling at full speed.

9. The vacuum of space is always cold

The vacuum of space in the total darkness at the coldest spot can reach -454 degrees F. That’s really, really cold.

On the other hand, in sunlight near the Earth the temperature can reach 250 degrees F. That is the reason why astronauts always wear reflective white space suits.

10. There are only 3 matters: liquid, solid and gas

There is another big phase of matter and it’s called plasma. Plasma is the most abundant matter since stars and the sun are made of glowing plasma.

There are also a lot more phases of matter, but solid, gas, plasma and liquid are the main ones.