Our planet Earth is very big and full of amazing places. But how can we see the whole Earth at once? We can't travel to space easily, and we can't lay the Earth flat on a table. Instead, we use a globe – a small round model of the Earth.
A globe helps us explore what our world looks like in a simple, three-dimensional way. Let's learn about the globe and how it represents Earth's shape, land, water, and important features in a fun, easy way.
Earth is shaped like a sphere (a round ball). Long ago, some people thought the Earth was flat, but now we know it's round. If you look at pictures of Earth from space, it looks like a big blue and green marble.
Because Earth is round, a globe (which is also round) is the best way to show what Earth really looks like. A globe is like a mini Earth that you can hold in your hands or keep on your desk.
A globe is a three-dimensional model of the Earth. It's usually a sphere mounted on a stand, and it may spin just like Earth spins in real life! The globe's surface is painted or printed to show the same things we would see on a world map, such as continents, countries, and oceans.
Because it's a scale model, everything on the globe is much smaller than in real life, but placed in the correct position relative to each other.
A globe gives us an accurate picture of where things are on Earth. If you point to a spot on the globe, you are pointing to a real location on our planet! It helps us understand how far apart places are, how big or small different countries and oceans are compared to each other, and what the Earth looks like as a whole.
Look closely at a globe and you will see large areas of land and even larger areas of water. Earth's surface is mainly divided into continents (huge land masses) and oceans (vast water bodies). There are seven continents and five main oceans on Earth. Knowing them helps us read a globe or map better:
Land vs Water: About 3/4 of our planet's surface is water, and only 1/4 is land. That's why from far away the Earth looks mainly blue. The continents (land) stick out of the ocean water like big islands. Each continent has different countries, mountains, rivers, and people, but on a globe we see the overall shape of these land masses. The oceans are home to marine life and connect continents together.
Take This Quiz:
Besides showing land and water, globes have imaginary lines drawn on them that help us locate places and understand Earth's movement. These aren't real lines on Earth; you won't see them on the ground or ocean, but they are used for reference. The most important ones are the axis, the poles, and the equator.
On a globe, the axis is usually what the globe is attached to on the stand (that rod through the globe). This line is tilted – not straight up – which is why our globe is tilted on its base. This tilt of the axis is the reason we have seasons. Remember the axis = the imaginary stick Earth spins on.
These poles are in the middle of the Arctic (north) and Antarctic (south) regions. It's extremely cold at the poles and they are often covered in ice. No countries exist at the poles (though some countries have land near them, like Greenland near the North Pole and Antarctica covers the South Pole).
Everything north of the equator is in the Northern Hemisphere, and everything south is in the Southern Hemisphere. For example, India or the United States are north of the equator (Northern Hemisphere), while Australia and most of South America are south of the equator (Southern Hemisphere). On a globe, the equator is usually drawn as a bold line around the center (at 0° latitude). It's often labeled and sometimes even colored red or another bright color for visibility.
Remembering Poles and Equator: A neat way to remember them is with a simple comparison: imagine the Earth is a person. The North Pole is like the Earth's hat on top, the South Pole is like Earth's shoes at the bottom, and the Equator is like Earth's belt around the waist! This can help you recall which part is which.
A globe can show many things about Earth, but here are some key uses and what information you can get from a globe:
For example, a globe can show that Brazil is south of the United States, or that the Indian Ocean lies between Africa and Australia. It shows direction too: North, South, East, West are easier to understand on a globe because north is toward the North Pole, etc.
The shape of Italy (like a boot), or India (triangular peninsula) or South America (rounded triangle) all appear correctly on the globe. You also get a sense of scale – for instance, the Pacific Ocean looks huge on the globe (and it is the largest ocean in reality).
Or you can see the shortest path between two points is often along a great circle (for example, airplanes from North America to Asia often fly over the Arctic region – you can see why on a globe because the globe allows you to trace a straight line over the curved surface).
This is a bit beyond just reading a globe, but it's one of the educational uses of a globe in understanding Earth's behavior.
Knowing hemispheres helps in understanding climate patterns (e.g., seasons are opposite in Northern vs Southern Hemisphere) and geography (e.g., most of Africa is in the Eastern Hemisphere, most of the Americas in the Western Hemisphere).
Take This Quiz:
Both globes and maps are important tools for geographers and students to study Earth. Each has advantages and disadvantages. Let's compare them in a simple way:
Globe (3D Model) | Map (2D Drawing) |
Shape: Spherical (round) like Earth. It shows the Earth's true shape without distortion. | Shape: Flat representation of Earth or a part of it. Can show distortion because you can't flatten a sphere without stretching parts. |
View of Earth: Shows the entire Earth (just turn it around to see all of it). Good for understanding how continents and oceans connect on a global scale. | View of Earth: A single map usually shows the whole Earth flattened or just a region/country. World maps show everything at once but may distort sizes; regional maps focus on parts of Earth. |
Accuracy: Very accurate for sizes, shapes, and distances relative to each other, because it mimics Earth's curvature. No part is exaggerated. | Accuracy: Some maps (like world maps) make areas near the poles look larger or stretched (e.g., Greenland appears huge on some flat maps). However, maps can be accurate for small areas and specific details when designed for those areas. |
Detail: Limited space means not every city or road can be labeled on a small globe. It's more for general features (countries, major cities, oceans, etc.). | Detail: Can be very detailed. You can have a large map of a country or city with every road, or a thematic map showing rainfall, etc. Maps can zoom in on areas for fine details. |
Usefulness: Great for visualizing global concepts – like Earth's rotation, time zones (some globes have them), or simply where places are in relation to each other globally. Also as a teaching tool for understanding Earth as a planet. | Usefulness: Great for navigation and specific information. If you want to plan a road trip, you use a map. If you want to study population, weather, or other specific data, thematic maps are used. Also easier to carry around (fold a paper map or use a digital map). |
Portability: Bulky and not easy to carry in a backpack (though there are inflatable globes or small pocket globes!). Usually stays in one place like a classroom or home. | Portability: Very portable. Paper maps fold up, and digital maps are on phones and computers. You can have an atlas (a book of maps) on a shelf. |
Cool Factor: It spins! It's fun to rotate and point at random places to see where you land. It feels like a toy and a tool. | Cool Factor: It's flat, but you can hang a world map on the wall as a poster. You can also draw on maps or highlight routes. Both have their own kind of coolness! |
When astronauts went to space and looked back at Earth, they gave it the nickname "The Blue Planet." Why? Because from space, Earth looks mainly blue. As we learned, most of Earth's surface is covered in water. The oceans reflect the blue sky and sunlight, making Earth appear bright blue from far away. The globe often shows this by coloring water areas in blue, reminding us how important water is on our planet.
Imagine you are floating in space and looking at Earth. You would see swirls of white (clouds and polar ice) and big patches of brownish-green (land), but overall a lot of blue. This view is captured in many satellite photos like the famous Blue Marble image. It's a beautiful sight and also teaches us an important fact: about 70% of Earth is covered by oceans.
Take This Quiz:
Rate this lesson:
Wait!
Here's an interesting quiz for you.