From space, Earth looks like the blue water world it is. Earth's atmosphere is a mixture of gasses that become thinner as we move away from the planet toward space. Some of the oxygen in Earth's atmosphere has changed over time to form ozone. Earth's high ozone layer filters out the sun's harmful ultraviolet rays, protecting the creatures living on the surface. But too much ozone helps trap the sun's infrared rays.
Infrared radiation is heat radiation.
It is the warmth you feel when the sun shines on you. If too much heat is trapped in Earth's atmosphere, surface temperatures will rise. Terri Field Earth is covered with mountains, volcanoes, lakes, rivers, and oceans. Most of the surface material is made of rocks high in silica, iron, and magnesium. Earth's average surface temperature is 45 F. To escape Earth's gravity you have to travel at 25,000 miles per hour.