Welcome to Our Solar System

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Welcome to Our Solar System!

• Within the Milky Way Galaxy

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MERCURY

• NAMED FOR Messenger of the Roman Gods
• DISTANCE FROM THE SUN 36,000,000 miles
• REVOLVING TIME AROUND THE SUN 88 Earth Days
• MOONS none
• SURFACE TEMPERATURE
  662F Day,
  
  -274 F at Night

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• Mercury is the planet closest to our sun and
  moves very quickly around it. It is hard to see
  because of the Suns bright glare. The planet is
  very hot during the day because of its nearness
  to the Sun and very cold at night because the
  heat leaves the planet and escapes into space.
  There is no atmosphere to trap the heat.
• Mercurys surface is mostly a rocky desert
  with mountains and craters. Its surface is very
  much like our Moon. Since there is no air, the
  planet has no life on it.

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VENUS

• Named for The Roman Goddess of Love and
  Beauty
• Distance from the Sun 67,235,000 miles
• Diameter 7,570 miles
• Revolving time around the Sun
• 225
  Earth Days
• Moons none
• Surface Temperature 842 F

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• Venus is the second planet from the Sun and
  closest to Earth. It is about the same SIZE as
  Earth, so it is sometimes called the Earths
  Twin. However, we know that it is VERY
  different from the Earth.
• Venus is surrounded by yellowish clouds of
  sulfuric acid and has a very hot, rocky surface.
  The surface has ridges and valleys, mountains,
  and volcanoes.
• We could not live on Venus because of the
  high temperature on the planet and the lack of
  enough oxygen.
• Venus is the brightest planet in the sky and
  can be seen even in the daytime.

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EARTH

• Named For Mother Earth in Roman Mythology
• Distance from the Sun
• Diameter 7,926 miles
• Revolving time around the Sun 365 1/4 Earth
  Days
• Moons one
• Surface temperature 71 F

93,000,000 miles!
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• Earth is the planet on which we live. It is
  unusual in our solar system because it is the
  only planet that has life on it as we know it.
  None of the other planets has water and air
  plants and animals need to live.
• If you take a picture of planet Earth from
  space, it looks like a blue and white ball. The
  Earths surface is about 70 percent water. There
  are 7 large land areas call continents that make
  up the rest of the surface. On these continents
  are mountains, plains, volcanoes, deserts, rain
  forests, and glaciers.

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The Moon

• Named for Diana, Roman Goddess of Animals
  and Hunting
• Distance from the Earth 240,000 miles
• Diameter 2,160 miles
• Revolving time around Earth
  27 1/3 Earth Days
• Surface Temperature 260 F Day
  -280 F Night

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• The Earth has one moon we call the Moon. It
  is larger than the planet Pluto but smaller than
  the Earth. It is close to us so it appears big
  in the sky. The Moon shines because it
  reflects light from the Sun. The Moon has
  some very hot and cold areas. There is no water
  or air to be found anywhere. If you explore the
  Moons surface, you must wear a spacesuit so you
  have air to breathe. You can only talk to
  another person on the Moon by radio since there
  is no air to carry the sound of your voice.
• There are many craters on the Moon caused by
  meteors hitting its surface. The Moon rocks,
  which are found everywhere, are made up of many
  minerals.

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MARS

• Distance from the Sun 142,000,000
• Diameter 4,222 miles
• Revolving time around the sun
• 687 Earth Days
• Moons 2
• Surface Temperature -80 F

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• Mars is known as the red planet. If you
  look through a telescope, it looks like an
  orange-red disk because of its reddish color
  rocky deserts. There is a white ice cap at its
  north pole and a cap at the south pole made up of
  frozen gases.
• There used to be many volcanoes on Mars.
  The mountains on the planet were formed by the
  lava from these ancient volcanoes. There are
  huge dust storms made up of red swirling sand.
  When the red sand floats in the atmosphere, the
  sky around Mars appears pink.
• It was once thought that there could be
  life on the planet Mars. We know through space
  exploration that there is no life there now.
  There may have been life on Mars in the past as
  there is evidence that there could have been
  water on the surface many years ago.

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JUPITER

• Named for Roman King of the Gods
• Distance from the Sun 12 Earth
  Years
• Diameter 88,700 miles
• Moons More than 16
• Temperature Probably -229 F in the
  upper clouds 45,000 F at the center of the
  planet!

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• Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar
  system and the fifth from the Sun. It is the
  fourth brightest object in the sky and is
  surrounded by clouds.
• The planet has many colorful spots on it and
  one giant spot known as the Great Red Spot. It
  changes its position from year to year. It is
  made up of swirling gases like a huge hurricane
  that never stops moving.
• Jupiters 4 largest moons are known as the
  Galilean satellites and are named Io, Ganymede,
  Callisto, and Europa. The other smaller 12 moons
  have been recently discovered.
• There is a thin ring of very small particles
  and dust around the planet. It is smooth and
  very bright and can be seen through a telescope.

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Ganymede,Callisto, Io, Europa
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SATURN

• Named for Roman God of Agriculture
• Distance from the Sun 75,000 miles
• Revolving Time Around the Sun 29 1/2 Earth
  Years
• Moons 23 or more
• Surface Temperature -300F

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• Saturn is the second largest planet in our
  Solar System. It is made up of very light gases
  and materials. It is difficult to see it surface
  through its very thick atmosphere.
• Saturn is surrounded by dozens of flat
  rings. They may consist of lumps of ice, rocks,
  and dust. Saturn, with its magnificent ring
  system, is one of the most beautiful objects in
  our Solar System.
• There are many unusual moons orbiting the
  planet. Some are like giant balls of ice while
  others have very large craters. Its moon,
  Iapetus, has one side that when facing the planet
  looks dark and dirty, while the other side is
  shiny and white. Titan, its largest moon, is the
  only moon with a thick atmosphere.

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Iapetus
Titan
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URANUS

• Distance from the Sun 1,800,000,000
  miles
• Diameter 32,000 miles
• Revolving time around the Sun 84 Earth
  years
• Moons 15 or more
• Surface temperature Unknown

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• Uranus is a very cold planet because of its
  distance from the Sun. Its atmosphere is made up
  gases, and the center of the planet is rock and
  metal. Some scientists think there may be oceans
  thousands of mile deep under the atmosphere.
• There are eleven rings that surround Uranus.
  These rings are made up of small particles and
  are not as visible as those around Saturn.
• Five major moons orbit the planet. Miranda
  is the smallest and Titania is the largest. Ten
  more very small moons have recently been
  discovered.

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Miranda
Titania
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NEPTUNE

• Named for Roman God of the Sea
• Distance from the Sun 2,800,000,000 miles
• Revolving Time around the Sun
  165 Earth Years
• Moons 8 or more
• Surface Temperature -360 F

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• Neptune is a large, distant planet that is
  made up of gases. It is covered by a thick
  layer of clouds which makes it appear blue-green
  when you see it through a telescope.
• The planets surface contains a huge, dark
  mark called the Great Dark Spot which is
  probably a large storm center. The spot is so
  big, scientists think it is the size of Earth.
• Neptune is another planet surrounded by
  rings made up of small bits of ice and other
  frozen materials. So far, scientists have
  discovered 5 rings.
• Triton is Neptunes largest moon. It is an
  icy, pink and white ball streaked with blue. It
  may be the coldest place in our Solar System.

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PLUTO

• Named for Roman God of the Dead
• Distance from the Sun 3,700,000,000 miles
• Revolving time around the Sun
  248 Earth Years
• Moons 1
• Surface Temperature -300 F

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• It is difficult to know much information
  about Pluto because of its distance from earth.
  It is the smallest planet in our Solar System and
  is probably made of frozen ice. It is surprising
  to discover a moon orbiting such a tiny planet.
• Scientists have to guess what its surface
  temperature is like until satellite exploration
  can send back more information about this distant
  planet.
• Some scientists believe Pluto should not be
  considered a planet.

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COMETS

• A Comet is an object in the sky that looks like a
  bright star with a tail.
• It is made up of ice, rock and dust.
• The center looks something like a dirty snowball.

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• Comets move in a definite path through our
  Solar System. This oval shaped or elliptical
  path takes the comet from outer space to around
  the Sun and back again. We can see a comet when
  it comes close to the Sun and it lit up by it.
  Its bright tail always points away from the Sun.
• A comet is named for the astronomer who
  discovered it. Halleys Comet may be the most
  famous comet ever discovered. It can be seen
  every 76 years as it comes close to the Earth and
  continues in its orbit around the Sun.

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METEORS AND METERORITES

• Meteors are lumps of metal and rock that streak
  through the sky.
• When they enter the earths atmosphere and reach
  the Earths surface, they are known as
  Meteorites.
• They are often called falling stars or
  shooting stars.
• On a clear night, you can see streaks of light
  across the sky. They look like they are going to
  fall towards the Earth. Most meteors burn up in
  space before they reach the Earth.

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These are photographs taken of meteors during the
Leonid Meteor Shower in November 2005.
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• Some meteors have fallen to Earth and have
  caused large holes in the ground. The Great
  Meteor Crater of Arizona was created by a
  meteorite that scientists believe struck the
  Earth over 25,000 years ago.

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Meteorites
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ASTEROIDS

• An asteroid is an extremely small or minor
  planet.
• There are thousands of them that revolve around
  the Sun, just like planets in our Solar System.

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• Most of the asteroids we can see are between Mars
  and Jupiter in what is known as the asteroid
  belt.
• They range in size from very small to hundreds of
  miles in diameter.
• The largest one is named Ceres and is about 600
  miles across.
• Asteroids are made of rock that can be light or
  heavy, shiny or dull.
• They contain many valuable metals and minerals.

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