OUR SOLAR SYSTEM
CONSISTS OF
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The sun
Eight official planets
At least three "dwarf planets"
Comets and asteroids
THE SUN
THE STAR AT THE CENTER OF
THE SOLAR SYSTEM
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The largest object in the solar system
One hundred and nine Earths would be required
to fit across the Sun's disk, and its interior could
hold over 1.3 million Earths
The Sun's outer visible layer is called the
photosphere and has a temperature of 6,000°C
(11,000°F)
MERCURY
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About the same size as the Moon
Closest planet to the Sun, about 58 million kilometers
from the Sun
Makes one complete orbit around the Sun every 87.97
days
Rotates on its axis very slowly compared to Earth. It
completes one rotation in about 58 days and 15 minutes
Is covered with mountains,
craters, ridges and valleys.
MERCURY
Q&A
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What is Mercury’s
average nightly
temperature?
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Temperature ranges from
425 degrees in the day to
-170 degrees at night
VENUS
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The closest planet to the Earth, about the same size as
the Earth
2nd planet in order from the Sun, about 108 million
kilometers from the Sun
Makes one complete orbit around the Sun every 224.7
days
Rotates on its axis more slowly than any other planet, it
completes one rotation in about 243 days and 24
minutes
Is the brightest object in our sky, besides the Sun and
Moon.
VENUS
Q&A
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How did Venus get its
name?
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The Romans named the
five planets they could
visible see after their
most important gods.
Venus, the brightest
planet is named after the
Roman goddess of love,
beauty, and fertility
EARTH
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3rd planet in order from the Sun, It is about 150
million kilometers from the Sun
Makes one complete orbit around the Sun every
365.27 days
Rotates on its axis about the same speed as
Mars (just a little slower). It completes one
rotation in about 23 hours and 56 minutes.
Is mostly covered by water (75%)
Has a total of 1 moon
EARTH
Q&A
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Why is Earth called the
“Blue Planet”?
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Earth is around 70 %
water and when viewed
from space it appears
mostly blue.
MARS
THE RED PLANET
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Its mass (weight) is 1/10th of the Earth, its diameter is
1/2 that of earth
4th planet from the Sun, it is about 228 million
kilometers from the Sun
Makes one complete orbit around the Sun every
686.98 days
Rotates on its axis about the same speed as the Earth.
It completes one rotation in about 24 hours and 37
minutes.
Has seasons similar to our planet, but they last much
longer
Has a total of 2 moons
MARS
Q&A
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What are the gases in the
atmosphere on Mars?
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The atmosphere mostly
consists of Carbon
Dioxide, 95%, there is
also Argon and
Nitrogen. Mars has a
very thin atmosphere.
JUPITER
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The largest planet, its mass (weight) is over 320 times
that of the Earth, its diameter is over 10 times earths
5th planet in order from the Sun, it is about 780 million
kilometers from the Sun
Makes one complete orbit around the Sun every 11.86
years
Rotates on its axis faster than any other planet, it
completes one rotation in about 9 hours and 50
minutes
Is one of the brightest planets
Has a total of 16 moons
JUPITER
Q&A
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What is special about
Jupiter?
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The thing that is special
about Jupiter is that it
has a big red spot. The
big red spot is a storm.
Jupiter is cold and rocky.
SATURN
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2nd largest planets, its mass (weight) is over 95
times that of the Earth, its diameter is over 10
times that of our planet
6th planet in order from the Sun, It is about 1.4
billion kilometers from the Sun
Makes one complete orbit around the Sun every
29.46 years
Rotates on its axis at a very fast speed, it
completes one rotation in about 10 hours and 39
minutes
Is known for the many rings that go around it
Has a total of 21 moons
SATURN
Q&A
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Does Saturn have
seasons?
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Yes, Saturn has seasons,
like the planet Earth,
buts Saturn’s season’s last
over 7 years. There is
also hurricanes and very
cold air on Saturn.
URANUS
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Composed mainly of hydrogen and helium gases, its
mass (weight) is over 14 times that of the Earth, its
diameter is 4 times that of Earth
7th planet in order from the Sun, it is about 2.9 billion
kilometers from the Sun
Makes one complete orbit around the Sun every 84
years
Rotates on its axis about the same speed as the
Neptune, it completes one rotation in about 17 hours
and 14 minutes
Can sometimes be seen with the naked eye
Has a 15 moons
URANUS
Q&A
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What are the most interesting features of Uranus?
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The planets is a blue-green color because of methane gas in the
atmosphere. It may have lower %’s of light elements and a
greater % of water. Also Uranus’s atmosphere is mainly
hydrogen and methane.
NEPTUNE
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Very similar to Uranus in size, its mass (weight) is over
17 times that of the Earth, its diameter is 4 times that
of earth
8th planet in order from the Sun, it is about 4.5 billion
kilometers from the Sun
Makes one complete orbit around the Sun every 164.79
years
Rotates on its axis about the same speed as Uranus, it
completes one rotation in about 18 hours and 26
minutes
Has a weather system that is very active, some storms
with winds of 400 miles per hour have lasted for
hundreds of years on its surface
Has a total of 8 moons
NEPTUNE Q & A
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What are 3 facts about Neptune?
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Neptune is the farthest planet from the Sun
Neptune is the coldest planet
Had a great dark spot on the same latitude line as
Jupiter's Great red storm
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PLUTO
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Is known now as a dwarf planet, its mass (weight) is
1/500th that of the Earth, its diameter is about 1/6
that of our planet
It is about 5.9 billion kilometers from the Sun
Makes one complete orbit around the Sun every 248
years
Rotates on its axis slowly when compared to Earth, it
completes one rotation in about 6 days and 9 minutes
Is sometimes known as a double-planet because it has
a moon (Charon) that orbits it
Has a total of 1 moon
PLUTO
Q&A
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Why is Pluto now considered a dwarf planet?
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It was declassified because of its strange elliptical orbit
as opposed to all the other planets’ orbits which are
circular, Pluto’s orbit is the only planet which is
elliptical (like and oval) around the sun