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Birthday · August 19, 1996

Welcome to Planet Earth

August 19, 1996

On this day, the universe repeated one of its rarest tricks: it arranged dust, light, memory, and possibility into a person no equation...

Welcome to Planet Earth

A little universe, just for you

Your date.
Ready to give.

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APOD published August 19, 1996. Full image credits are on the original APOD entry below. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.

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Welcome to Planet Earth

Original APOD · August 19, 1996

Welcome to Planet Earth, the third planet from a star named the Sun. The Earth is shaped like a sphere and composed mostly of rock. Over 70 percent of the Earth's surface is water. The planet has a relatively thin atmosphere composed mostly of nitrogen and oxygen. Earth has a single large Moon which is about 1/4 of its diameter and, from the planet's surface, is seen to have almost exactly the same angular size as the Sun. With its abundance of liquid water, Earth supports a large variety of life forms, including potentially intelligent species such as dolphins and humans. Please enjoy your stay on Planet Earth.

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