Source: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) The diameter of our closest star, the Sun, is 1,392,000 kilometers. The Sun is thought to be 4.6 billion years old. The Sun is a…
(Encyclopedia) VenetiaVenetiavənēˈshə [key], Ital. Veneto or Venezia Euganea, region (1991 pop. 4,380,797), 7,095 sq mi (18,376 sq km), NE Italy, bordering on the Gulf of Venice (an arm of the…
(Encyclopedia) Harrison, Benjamin, 1833–1901, 23d President of the United States (1889–93), b. North Bend, Ohio, grad. Miami Univ. (Ohio), 1852; grandson of William Henry Harrison. After reading law…
(Encyclopedia) Hawran or HauranHawranhouränˈ [key] [Heb.,=hollow or cavernous land], region, SW Syria. It is a largely treeless area marked by conical volcanic peaks, barren lava fields, and rich…
(Encyclopedia) Orbiting Geophysical Observatory (OGO), series of six orbiting observatories (see observatory, orbiting) launched between 1964 and 1969 by the National Aeronautics and Space…
(Encyclopedia) Smith, Jedediah Strong, 1799–1831, American explorer, one of the greatest of the mountain men, b. near Binghamton, N.Y. Early in 1824, Smith took a party through South Pass, beginning…
(Encyclopedia) Roca, Julio ArgentinoRoca, Julio Argentinoh&oomacr;ˈlyō ärhāntēˈnō rōˈkä [key], 1843–1914, general who became president of Argentina (1880–86, 1898–1904). Minister of war under…
CANADA’S PROVINCES AND TERRITORIESFIND OUT MOREThe first people in Canada came from Asia 70,000 to 12,000 years ago, via a land bridge now covered by the Bering Sea. The “First Nations” spread across…
FAULTSEISMOLOGYFIND OUT MOREEarthquakes are caused by movements of the giant tectonic plates that form Earth’s crust. SEISMOLOGY is the study of earthquakes. Most occur at cracks called…
