The Big Blue Marble, plant earth is a striking sight when viewed from space. The vacuum of space provides a completely unobstructed view of our terrestrial home. Once thought to be flat, our planet hangs in the silent vastness of outer space. There are no boundaries and no countries to be seen. Unlike flat maps of the world, globe models and globe stands give us a three dimensional view of this beautiful planet.

To understand just how the Earth is positioned in its orbit around the sun, we must understand the flow of the seasons. Since we were children, most of us have been taught to think of the Earth spinning on an axis. To demonstrate this principle, many teachers would simply take a Styrofoam ball and slide the ball onto a rod. The rod would represent the imaginary axis that runs from the North Pole to the South Pole.

Every planet, including Earth rotates on its axis. The position of the planets surface changes relative to the position of its sun. The only way to display accurately just how this works is by using a globe mounted to a two axis globe stand. In addition to the axis running through the poles, the second axis runs through the equatorial center of the replica planet.

The history of the globe is thought to date back to one hundred fifty BME. The ancient Greeks are credited with the introducing the concept of Earth as a sphere. Eratosthenes had reportedly calculated the circumference of the Earth. The ancient Greeks observed that a post, planted in a fixed position, would cast a different length shadow at various times throughout the day and through various seasons. It is really quite easy to understand how the ancient Greeks and other ancient cultures calculated that the Earth was round. It was necessary only to observe a lunar or solar eclipse. The shadows cast by the Earth and moon during an eclipse were observed correctly as round or spherical.

For centuries, the ancients believed that the Earth was flat. Several factors went into the formation of this belief. Standing on a fixed position, one could not see beyond the horizon. Even far out to sea, the earth appears to stop. Even at a higher altitude, as one might find on a hilltop, the curvature of the earth would not be visible. Absent the observations made during an eclipse, the logical conclusion was that the surface of the Earth was indeed flat.

The superstitions about the edge of the world were a significant part of ancient lore and mythology. Sailors have always been a superstitious lot and tales about a trip to lands end were replete with visions of sea monsters and death. The common myth was that a ship, upon reaching the edge of the world, would simply fall off. Other legends claimed that great monsters lived in the sea just beyond the visible horizon and sailing into those waters meant certain death.

Some historians credit Christopher Columbus with proving that the world was not flat. Others argue that, centuries before Columbus, Norse sailors navigated from modern day Scandinavia to North America. Regardless of who receives the credit, the point is that the observable evidence against a flat earth was irrefutable. Even today, a group called the Flat Earth Society refuses to accept the fact that the Earth has a spherical shape. Members of the group refuse to accept this premise despite the observations made from space. The group has made the claim that manned space flights and satellite observations have been manufactured, possible on a Hollywood film stage.

The rotation of the Earth is noticeable in different phenomenon. The occurrence of day and night is one indication. The other has to do with gravity. If the Earth did not spin, there would not be any gravity. The rotation of a planet produces gravitational pressure. Sir Isaac Newton was the first to have discovered gravitational force. The force of gravity is the same everywhere on the planet, which is another indication that the Earth is indeed round.

The ancients had very little to go on in the way of navigation. The movement of the sun, moon, and the stars were not fully understood until the introduction of the sextant. The sextant allowed mariners to plot accurately, celestial movements across the sky. Still, without the compass, precise navigation was impossible. Maps have a built in drawback since a flat map is one dimensional. A flat map does not account for or give an indication of the curvature of the Earth. The limitations of a flat map have been overcome somewhat by the introduction of the spherical maps. These maps more accurately show Earths land masses in a position relative to each other.

The production of early globes was reliant on the maps available at the time. Map making or cartography, has always been an evolving science. Early seafarers were the main source of information regarding shoreline shapes, water depths, and distances. The accuracy of map making improved along side advances in celestial navigation.

Globes mounted in a two axis stand are a great for understanding how the Earth moves relative to the sun. Rotating the globe on its polar axis shows the Earths daily movement. The equatorial axis can be moved to show the tilting of the Earth relative to the sun.

As an educational tool, there is no substitute for an Earth globe. One can see at a glance how the continents relate to each other in size and distance. Some globes and globes stands are purely decorative. Decorative globes may show land masses and other global features as almost a caricature. Other types of decorative globes and globe stands feature decorative lighting effects that are great for child. For those considered geographical or cartographical purists, there are globes available that are highly accurate. Designer globes offer a variety of styles from Old World traditional to modern chic.