The solar system’s largest volcano stands on Mars
Olympus Mons on Mars is the largest known volcano in the solar system.
Saturn is less dense than water on average
Saturn's average density is lower than that of liquid water, making it the least dense planet in our solar system.
The Moon is slowly moving away from Earth
The Moon is receding from Earth by about 3.8 centimetres per year, largely because of tidal interactions.
The General Sherman Tree is the world’s largest by trunk volume
The General Sherman giant sequoia is considered the world's largest living single-stem tree by trunk volume, although it is not the tallest tree.
Hummingbirds can hover and fly backward
Hummingbirds are capable of sustained hovering and can fly backward as well as forward.
Earth’s longest mountain range is hidden beneath the ocean
The mid-ocean ridge is the longest mountain range on Earth, stretching roughly 65,000 kilometres across the planet.
Corals are animals, not underwater plants
Corals are invertebrate animals, and many reefs are built by colonies of tiny creatures called polyps.
On Venus, one rotation takes longer than a year
Venus takes about 243 Earth days to rotate once, but about 225 Earth days to orbit the Sun.
Dung beetles use the Milky Way to steer at night
On dark, moonless nights African dung beetles keep their dung balls rolling in a straight line by following the band of light from the Milky Way overhead.
Sudan has more ancient pyramids than Egypt
Egypt is famous for its pyramids, yet Sudan has far more. The Kingdom of Kush built well over 200 of them at sites such as El-Kurru, Nuri and Meroe.
Welwitschia, the desert plant with only two leaves
Welwitschia, a plant of the Namib Desert, grows only two leaves in its whole life. They never stop growing, and some plants are more than 1,500 years old.
Prince Rupert’s drops: the glass that survives a hammer
A Prince Rupert's drop has a glass head tough enough to survive a hammer blow, but break its thin tail and the whole drop bursts into powder in microseconds.
Earth’s quasi-moon Kamo’oalewa may be a broken piece of the Moon
A tiny asteroid that shadows Earth around the Sun reflects light like Apollo moon rocks, and China's Tianwen-2 probe has now reached it to collect a sample.
Bajau sea nomads evolved bigger spleens for free diving
Bajau free divers in Indonesia have spleens about 50% larger than neighbouring farmers, and a 2018 study traced part of this to a gene called PDE10A.
The Congo is the deepest river on Earth
A 2008 survey found the lower Congo River more than 200 metres deep, the deepest river known, and its violent currents help shape how its fish evolve.
Ethiopia’s calendar has 13 months and runs years behind
Ethiopia's calendar has twelve 30-day months plus a short 13th month, starts its year in September and runs about seven to eight years behind the Gregorian.