The Planets in our Solar System

The Planets Do you know a saying to remember the planets in order? My Very Eager Mother Just Severed Us Nine Pizzas Do you know the planets in order? Mercury Venus Earth Mars Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune Pluto (dwarf planet)

Solar System Data Pluto2,300

What do you know about the planets?

Planet Sizes Relative to Each Other

Inner Planets Characteristics of the inner planets: “Terrestrial Planets” Rocky Dense (about five times denser than water) Metal cores (iron) Thin atmosphere The inner planets: Mercury Venus Earth Mars

Mercury Inner most planet Terrestrial planet “Iron Dwarf” for having a large iron core and being only 38% the size of Earth Thin Atmosphere: Some Hydrogen, Helium, Oxygen Composition: Iron Core, Silicate Surface Iron core is about the size of Earth’s moon Hundreds of craters Sunlight Strength: % of Earth’s Highest and lowest surface temps: 427°C to -173 °C

Venus Second planet from the Sun Terrestrial planet “Sister Planet” roughly the same size and mass as Earth’s Thick Atmosphere: 96% Carbon Dioxide Surface pressure 92 times greater than Earth’s Clouds made of sulfuric acid Composition: Nickel-iron Core, Silicate mantle, rocky crust Lots of volcanic features, but not active. Sunlight Strength: 190% (cloud tops), 5% (surface) of Earth’s Surface Temp: 464° C

Earth Third planet from the Sun Terrestrial planet 200km Thick Atmosphere: 78% Nitrogen, 21% Oxygen, 1% argon Composition: Nickel-iron Core (inner core: solid & outer core: liquid), Olivine mantle (composed from oxygen, magnesium and silicon), rocky crust One moon

Mars Fourth planet from the Sun Terrestrial planet “Red Dwarf” Once covered with water Surface Pressure: equivalent to the cruising altitude of a plane Atmosphere: 95% Carbon Dioxide, 2.7% Nitrogen, 1.6% Argon, and 0.7% other gases Composition: Iron and iron sulfide core, olivine and iron oxide mantle, rocky crust Craters in the south, volcanic features in the north Lack of craters in the north suggest a much younger region covered by lava flows. Sunlight Strength: 36-52% of Earth’s Surface Temp: -50°C to -123° C

The Outer Planets Characteristics of the outer planets: “Jovian Planets” Composed of mostly gases and ices No solid surface May have a solid core Most have rings Thick Tumultuous atmospheres - rapid winds, large storms The outer planets: Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune Pluto (dwarf planet)

Jupiter Fifth planet from the Sun Jovian planet “Goliath planet” Five main rings Atmosphere: 90% Hydrogen and 10% Helium Three separate clouds layers of ammonia ice, ammonium hydrosulfide ice, and water ice. The atmosphere blends seamlessly with the outer core. Composition: Liquid molecular hydrogen and helium outer mantle, liquid metallic hydrogen inner mantle, and ice and rock core Core pressure is about 100 million atmospheres A very powerful magnetic field that extends all the way to Saturn’s Orbit. Sunlight Strength: 3-4% of Earth’s

Saturn Sixth planet from the Sun Jovian planet “Ringed Giant” Seven main rings Atmosphere: 96% Hydrogen and 4% Helium Clouds on Saturn the same as Jupiter’s but can twice a deep as Jupiter’s. Composition: Liquid hydrogen (outer mantle), Liquid metallic hydrogen (inner mantle), ice (outer core) and rock (inner core) Most oblate planet with visible bulges at the equator Sunlight strength: 1% of Earth’s Powerful magnetic field (600 times that of Earth’s)

Uranus Seventh planet from the Sun Jovian planet “Blue Giant” Eleven thin rings Atmosphere: 83% Hydrogen, 15% Helium and 2% Methane Only one cloud layer of methane has been detected. Below this layer it is believed to have clouds similar to Saturn and Jupiter Composition: Liquid hydrogen and other elements (outer mantle), slushy layer of icy compounds of water, methane, and ammonia (inner mantle), and an icy & rocky (core) Red light is absorbed by methane, which is why this planet is blue-green in color Sunlight strength: 1% of Earth’s Powerful magnetic field (50 times that of Earth’s) Axial inclination of 97.8 ° (sideways compared to other planets)

Neptune Eighth planet from the Sun Jovian planet “Blue Colossus” Five main rings Atmosphere: 79% Hydrogen, 18% Helium and 3% Methane Dynamic atmosphere with a main clouds of methane ice crystals. Composition: Hydrogen and other elements mixed into an icy liquid (outer mantle), slushy mixture rich in water, methane, and ammonia (inner mantle), and an icy & rocky (core) Orbit is almost perfectly circular Sunlight strength: 0.1% of Earth’s Visually the sun would be 900 times fainter than how we see it on Earth Axial inclination of 97.8 ° (sideways compared to other planets)

Poor Pluto What have you heard about Pluto? Why is it different than the other planets? Why is it now technically not a planet?

Pluto Little is know, but best guess is that 70% of the planet is rock and ice makes up the other 30% of the planet. The picture to the right is the highest resolution picture of Pluto known at this time. 67% of the diameter of the moon. Elongated and inclined orbit different than the other planets Member of the Kuiper Belt Kuiper belt is a belt of icy planet building leftovers NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft launched in early 2006 is expected to reach Pluto in 2015.