What if the sun was closer to earth? By Toby space What if the sun was closer to earth? By Toby

The Earth, the sun and the moon Today, the Earth is 150 million kilometres from the sun, with two planets, Mercury and Venus, between them. It takes the Earth 365 days, or one year, to revolve around the sun.

What if the sun was closer to earth? What effects would this have on our planet and its inhabitants ? Firstly, the temperature would get hotter depending on how much the Earth moves towards the sun. As well, the sea levels would rise. For example, if the Earth got 4 degrees, hotter the sea levels would rise by 50 metres.

Effect on Animals The Arctic's glaciers would melt. Eventually, polar bears would become extinct, as they would not have anywhere to live. Animals like penguins at the South Pole would also suffer the effects of raised temperatures and changes in climate.

Effects on People People in countries near to the equator would have to evacuate to other countries, because it would be too hot and too dry for them to live there. This would lead to immigration problems for other parts of the world.

Effect on Plants Some parts of the world would be too hot and dry to sustain plant life; other parts would be too wet and flooded. This would affect the amount of crops that can be grown to make food for the world’s population. Production of fruit and vegetables would be affected. Food would become very expensive because of its rarity.

Do you think we would be able to live on earth ? I think we would be able to live in some countries and continents, but not others. For example, Areas near the Equator would be too hot and there would be low water supplies for people. Coastal areas would be flooded. In the UK, we would have to move to central, higher areas, but lots of other people would want to live there too. This would happen in many other countries and continents as well.

Do you think humans would have adapted and looked differently to how we look now? Yes: Darker skin, due to the sun Shorter, due to the effect of gravity What else would change? Solar eclipses wouldn’t happen any more. The Earth’s orbit around the sun would be shorter, so a year would have fewer days. Gravity would increase