20 Earth Day facts that aren't common knowledge

There's so much to celebrate in the month of April.

The fourth month of the calendar year ushers in warm weather, tulips and Earth Day, the global celebration of our planet and all its splendor.

The annual day dedicated to environmental awareness lands on Monday, April 22 this year and is recognized around the globe.

In honor of the holiday, we've collected a list of Earth Day facts that just might surprise even the savviest of trivia buffs.

For instance, perhaps you may know that Earth Day was founded in 1970 by Gaylord Nelson, a Wisconsin senator who was deeply concerned about the damaging effects pollution was having on the earth. But did you know he's not the person who came up with the official name?

That distinction falls to Julian Koenig, an advertising writer whose first choice wasn't even "Earth Day."

How about this: Did you know that Earth Day has its own flag? Yep, it sure does. Not only that, but Earth Day also has its very own theme song, too.

If you can name that tune, go directly to the head of the class. If not, read on to find out what it is, as well as learn all sorts of interesting facts and tidbits about our planet about this annual commemoration of Mother Earth.

The earth is billions of years old

If you plan to bake the earth a cake in honor of its birthday, you're going to need a lot of candles. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the earth's geological age is estimated to be approximately 4.5 billion years old. Of course, Mother Earth doesn't look a day over 3 billion.

There have been 377 climate disasters since 1980

According to NOAA, since 1980, the U.S. has been impacted by 377 weather and climate disasters including droughts, flooding, hurricanes, wildfires and tornadoes. The cost? More than $2.6 trillion. In fact, the U.S. experienced more billion-dollar disasters in 2023 than any other year on record, says NOAA NCEI director, Deke Arndt. “Record heat waves, drought, wildfires and floods are a sobering reminder of the consequences of the long-term warming trend we’re seeing across our country."

There are 400 trees for every person on earth

A 2015 study estimated that there are roughly 3 trillion trees on earth, give or take a few million. Since there are around 8 billion people currently living on the planet, the math boils down to roughly 400 trees per person.

Close to 8 million metric tons of plastic go into the ocean annually

According to the U.S. Department of State, roughly 8 million metric tons of plastic go into the world's oceans every single year. Given that most plastics aren't biodegradable, they are likely to linger in the environment for centuries to come. Found in north-central region of the Pacific, the largest accumulation of plastic debris in the ocean is known as the "Great Pacific Garbage Patch" and is twice the size of Texas.

The earth isn't round

If you've ever taken a history class, you'll know that back in the days of Christopher Columbus, people believed that the earth was flat. Of course, since that time we've learned that our planet is actually round. However, it's not perfectly round, says NASA. Nope, instead, the planet has a bit of a tummy. "The planet bulges around the equator by an extra 0.3 percent as a result of the fact that it rotates about its axis," according to NASA's website. Who knew?

Earth Day was almost called 'Environmental Teach-in'

Senator Gaylord Nelson helped lead the charge to set aside a day to raise awareness for environmental issues. But it was Julian Koenig, a New York advertising writer, who came up with the holiday's name. Koenig reached out to Nelson and offered a few name suggestions. One of his early suggestions was "Environmental Teach-in." Thankfully, it didn't stick.

The U.S. generates 4.9 pounds of waste per person per day

According to the EPA‘s most recent figures, the total amount of solid waste generated each year falls just shy of 300 million tons and includes things like trash, product packaging, grass clippings, bottles, food scraps and more. Speaking of food, the USDA estimates that 30-40% of the food supply goes to waste or roughly 133 billion pounds, which equates to around $161 billion worth of food.

The EPA was formed because of Earth Day

Democrats, Republicans and people from all walks of life came together to support Earth Day. By the end of 1970, it resulted in the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, as well as the passing of significant environmental laws like the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act and the Endangered Species Act, among others.

The book 'Silent Spring' was a catalyst for Earth Day

As a marine scientist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Rachel Carson became increasingly concerned over what humans were doing to the world's fragile ecosystems. Although she penned several books, her 1962 release "Silent Spring," a book foretelling the dangers of pesticides and other environmental hazards, really made waves. It sold more than half a million copies and in doing so, raised public awareness and galvanized the environmental movement.

There's a flag for Earth Day

Put your love for the planet on display by flying the unofficial Earth Day flag. The flag, which features an image of Earth as viewed from space, was designed by environmental advocate John McConnell in 1968.

The date was chosen to appeal to college students

In part, April 22 was chosen as the date for Earth Day because it fell squarely between spring break and final exams — an important distinction given that college students were the ones most likely to participate in environmental activism. The other reason Earth Day is celebrated on April 22? It's Julian Koenig's birthday.

Some countries call it 'International Mother Earth Day'

The General Assembly of the United Nations designated April 22 as International Mother Earth Day through a resolution in 2009 — but America is one of the few countries that has not adopted the new name.

Earth Day has a theme song

Yes, really! The song "Earth Anthem" was written by Indian poet Abhay Kumar in 2013 and has since been recorded in all official UN languages.

Earth day went global in 1990

About 20 years after the concept of Earth Day was created in the 1970s, the campaign began to spread internationally. The 1990 Earth Day demonstration included efforts from about 200 million people in 141 countries, according to the Earth Day Network.

Earth Day has inspired countries to start environmentally beneficial initiatives

For example, on Earth Day in 2012, more than 100,000 people in China rode their bikes in order to reduce CO2 emissions and highlight the amount of pollution emitted from cars.

About a billion people participate in Earth Day

Each year, it's estimated that about a billion people participate in Earth Day in their own ways, big and small. That makes up about 15% of the world's population. What's more, this makes Earth Day the largest secular celebration in the world.

Earth Day sparked the creation of government environmental organizations

Established by Wisconsin senator, Gaylord Nelson, the very first Earth Day sparked an environmental movement — and led to the creation of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) among others.

Earth Day has a theme every year

Each year Earth Day has theme provided by earthday.org. The theme for Earth Day in 2023, was "Invest in Our Planet, which was meant to remind us that we need to take an active part in protecting our planet. This year, 2024, the theme is "Planet vs. Plastics" and its intent is to raise awareness and advocacy around reducing the production of plastics by 2040.

The first Earth Day had a good turnout

In 1970, during the first official Earth Day celebration, roughly 20 million Americans, which was about 10% of America's population at the time, participated in demonstrations or celebrations of some sort.

It's easy to participate in Earth Day

People of all ages can participate in Earth Day by doing even the smallest of things, like taking out your recycling or getting outside instead of using electronics inside. We can also do our part to make a difference by attending a march, planting a tree, cleaning up trash outside or anything that helps protect and preserve our planet.