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The third planet of the Solar System is the Earth and strangely enough, it is exactly one a.u. from the Sun. It has one comparatively large satellite called the Moon. Of the four terrestrial planets, the Earth is the largest and the most massive, just edging out its neighbor Venus. The most remarkable aspect of the planet Earth is us: its 6,000,000,000 human inhabitants. We may not be alone in the Universe, but beings that are able to look up at the stars and contemplate whether others out there are looking back are, in this or any other galaxy, a rare and precious occurrence.