THE SOLAR SYSTEM
Solar
System is heliocentric
Earth and other planets
revolve around the Sun.

SOLAR SYSTEM PARTS
Sun
Planets
Four Inner Planets
Four Outer Planets
Comets, Asteroids,
Meteors
THE SUN
It is our most important star.
Made up of ¾ hydrogen, ¼
helium.
Has two major parts
Interior
Atmosphere
SUN’S INTERIOR
Interior has 3 Layers
Core
Radiation
Zone
Convection
Zone
THE CORE
Inside of interior
Where Sun produces its
energy
Nuclear Fusion takes place

H+H+H+H

gravity
He + Energy, Light, and Heat
Temperature Increases
15,000,000 oC
RADIATION ZONE
Middle Layer of interior
Area of very tightly packed
gas
Energy transferred mainly by
electromagnetic radiation
So dense it can take 100,000
years for energy to move
through
CONVECTION ZONE

Outside layer of interior
Hot gases rise from bottom of
zone and cool at top
Cool gas sinks then reheats and
hot gas rises
Convection Current: moves
energy toward the Sun’s
surface

THE SUN’S ATMOSPHERE
Sun’s atmosphere has 3 layers
Photosphere

Chromosphere

Corona
PHOTOSPHERE
Photo means light: Light Sphere
This is the visible layer of the
Sun
Called the “surface of the Sun”

 looks
like a restless boiling pot of
liquid
 NOT A SOLID SURFACE
Temperature is less than 6000 oC
CHROMOSPHERE
Chromo means
color: color sphere
Red/Pink Color
Seen at the beginning and
end of a total solar eclipse

CORONA
Corona means
crown
Looks like a white halo
Only seen during a total
solar eclipse
extends millions of kilometers
into space as solar wind
FEATURES OF THE SUN
Sunspots:
areas of gas on the Sun’s
surface that are cooler than the
gases around them.
Cool areas don’t give off much light
 Appear dark
The number varies over an 11 year
time period
Shows Sun also on an axis

FEATURES OF THE SUN
Prominences: huge reddish
loops of gas
Often connect sunspots
Can extend
over the edge
of the Sun
FEATURES OF THE SUN
Solar Flares: eruptions in the
sunspots that release energy
into space
Can interfere with
communication on
Earth
Short duration
FEATURES OF THE SUN
Solar Wind: Continuous
stream of high energy
particles released into space by
corona
Causes the auroras
Increased by increasing
solar flare strength
INNER PLANETS
Terrestrial
planets
Small and dense
Rocky Surfaces
Closest to Sun
4 INNER PLANETS

Mercury

Earth

Venus

Mars
OUTER PLANETS
Gas
Giants
Very Large
No Solid Surfaces
Many Moons
Rings: thin disk of small
particles of ice and rocks
4 OUTER PLANETS

Jupiter

Uranus

Saturn

Neptune
PLUTO

Not considered a planet any
more

Solid Surface

Smaller and denser than
Earth
OTHER OBJECTS IN SPACE
Comet: loose collection of
ice, dust, and small rocky
particles whose orbit is long
and narrow ellipses.
OTHER OBJECTS
IN SPACE
Asteroid: Rocky objects
that are orbiting around the
Sun
too small and
numerous to
be planets

OTHER OBJECTS
IN SPACE
Meteoroid: chunk
of rock or dust in
space
Meteor: streak of light in
the sky produced by burning
of meteoroid in Earth’s
atmosphere.