Planet Earth is really, really old! It’s hard to imagine just how old it is, but scientists believe that it’s around 4.54 billion years old. That’s a really big number, but let me try to explain it in a way that’s easy to understand.
If you counted to a million out loud, it would take you about 12 days to finish. Now imagine counting to a billion – that would take you about 32 years to finish! That’s how big the number is that we’re talking about.
So, how did scientists figure out that Earth is so old? They used a lot of different methods to study rocks and fossils, and they looked at how they were formed and how they changed over time. By doing this, they were able to piece together a story about the history of our planet.
It’s really amazing to think about all the things that have happened on Earth over such a long time. Dinosaurs roamed the Earth for millions of years, and humans have only been around for a tiny fraction of that time. But even though we’ve only been here for a short time, we’ve already had a big impact on the planet – so it’s important that we take care of it for future generations to enjoy!