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NASA is celebrating Earth Day with pieces of Earth instead of cake. 。

But you don't have to wait until April 22 to get your own slice. The space agency is handing out planetary adoption certificates in the days leading up to the main event.。

SEE ALSO:NASA designed grippers that can lift celestial rocks in microgravity。

Through their "Adopt the Planet" campaign, anyone can virtually adopt a piece of Earth as seen from space. I put my name on the coordinates for 60.72° S, 121.92° W -- which was randomly assigned to me and is deep in the South Pacific Ocean, pretty much near Antarctica.。

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My little slice of Earth.Credit: nasa/adopt the planet。

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Once you've adopted a location, you can learn more about your speck of the world with data from NASA satellites, including everything from cloud height and sea surface temperature to humidity and chlorophyll levels. 。

You can take an even closer look at your adopted location through NASA's Worldview. The website shows all the layers of data and let's you get up close and personal with your new adopted section of the planet, though it gets a bit pixelated at a certain point. (Still, it's your slice, so you love it no matter how unfocused it gets.) 。

You can then take photos, share social posts, and print out pictures of your location -- just like any obsessed parent would do.。


As of Wednesday morning, 64,000 locations were still up for adoption. So what are you waiting for?
As of Wednesday morning, 64,000 locations were still up for adoption. So what are you waiting for?
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