Our Solar System Designed by Angela Colwell Start To end, press ESC

Common Terms AU (Astronomical Unit) AU (Astronomical Unit)  1 Astronomical Unit = 149,598,000 kilometers K (Kelvin degrees) K (Kelvin degrees)  1 Kelvin = ˚C  1 Kelvin = ˚F  1000 Kelvin = 1, ˚F Year Year  The years referred to in this presentation are Earth years (365 days). km (kilometer) km (kilometer)  1 kilometer = 1,000 meters  1 kilometer = miles kg (kilograms) kg (kilograms)  1 kilogram = 1,000 grams  1 kilogram = pounds Day Day  The days referred to in this presentation are Earth days (23.93 hours, 60 minutes per hour). Next  Go Back Watch this video for a size comparison of the planets and stars:

Click on a name to learn more… Pluto and the Kupier Belt the Oort Cloud the Asteroid Belt To return to this page, click any button that looks like this  Mercury Venus Earth Mars Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune the Sun  Go Back

The Sun Age: Age: nearly 4.6 billion years old Radius: Radius: 696,000 km Composition (by mass): Composition (by mass): 7% hydrogen, 28% helium, and 2% other elements Mass: Mass: 2 x kg (about 333,000 times Earth’s mass) Average Surface Temperature: Average Surface Temperature: about 5,800 K (10,000˚F), with temperatures in the core of about 15 million K The Sun contains 99.9% of the solar system’s total mass Click for more info

The Sun, continued Gravity compared to Earth: Gravity compared to Earth: The Sun converts hydrogen into helium in a process called nuclear fusion, which takes places in its core.  Go Back Check out these videos! 

Mercury Average distance from the Sun: Average distance from the Sun: AU Radius: Radius: 2,440 km Mass: Mass: times Earth’s mass Composition: Composition: rocks, metal Orbital Period (year): Orbital Period (year): 87.9 days Rotation Period (day): Rotation Period (day): 58.6 days Axis Tilt: Axis Tilt: 0.0 ˚ Average Surface Temperature: Average Surface Temperature: 700 K during the day; 100 K at night Click for more info

Mercury, continued Moons: Moons: none Rings: Rings: none Gravity compared to Earth: Gravity compared to Earth: 0.37  Go Back

Venus Average distance from the Sun: Average distance from the Sun: AU Radius: Radius: 6,051 km Mass: Mass: 0.82 times Earth’s mass Composition: Composition: rocks, metal Orbital Period (year): Orbital Period (year): 225 days Rotation Period (day): Rotation Period (day): 243 days Axis Tilt: Axis Tilt: ˚ Average Surface Temperature: Average Surface Temperature: 740 K Click for more info

Venus, continued Moons: Moons: none Rings: Rings: none Gravity compared to Earth: Gravity compared to Earth: 0.90  Go Back

Earth Average distance from the Sun: Average distance from the Sun: 1.00 AU Radius: Radius: 6,378 km Mass: Mass: 1.00 times Earth’s mass Composition: Composition: rocks, metal Orbital Period (year): Orbital Period (year): 365 days = 1 year Rotation Period (day): Rotation Period (day): hours Axis Tilt: Axis Tilt: 23.5 ˚ Average Surface Temperature: Average Surface Temperature: 290 K Click for more info

Earth – Our Home Planet Moons: Moons: one Rings: Rings: none Age: Age: 4.6 billion years old Chemical Composition of the Atmosphere: Chemical Composition of the Atmosphere:  79% nitrogen  20% oxygen  1% other gases Chemical Composition of the Earth: Chemical Composition of the Earth:  34.6% Iron  29.5% Oxygen  15.2% Silicon  12.7% Magnesium  2.4% Nickel  1.9% Sulfur  0.05% Titanium  Go Back Earth’s Moon

 Go Back Average distance from Earth: Average distance from Earth: 384,400 km Radius: Radius: 1,738 km Mass: Mass: times Earth’s mass Orbital Period: Orbital Period: 27.3 days Gravity compared to Earth: Gravity compared to Earth: 0.17

Mars Average distance from the Sun: Average distance from the Sun: 1.52 AU Radius: Radius: 3,397 Mass: Mass: 0.11 times Earth’s mass Composition: Composition: rocks, metal Orbital Period (year): Orbital Period (year): 1.88 years Rotation Period (day): Rotation Period (day): 24.6 hours Axis Tilt: Axis Tilt: 25.2 ˚ Average Surface Temperature: Average Surface Temperature: 220 K Click for more info

Mars, continued Moons: Moons: two (Phobos and Deimos) Rings: Rings: none Gravity compared to Earth: Gravity compared to Earth: 0.38  Go Back

Jupiter Average distance from the Sun: Average distance from the Sun: 5.20 AU Radius: Radius: 71,492 km Mass: Mass: 318 times Earth’s mass Composition: Composition: hydrogen, helium, hydrogen compounds Orbital Period (year): Orbital Period (year): 11.9 years Rotation Period (day): Rotation Period (day): 9.93 hours Axis Tilt: Axis Tilt: 3.1 ˚ Average Surface Temperature: Average Surface Temperature: 125 K Click for more info

Jupiter, continued Moons: Moons: 63 Rings: Rings: yes Gravity compared to Earth: Gravity compared to Earth: 2.65  Go Back

Saturn Average distance from the Sun: Average distance from the Sun: 9.54 AU Radius: Radius: 60,268 km Mass: Mass: 95.2 times Earth’s mass Composition: Composition: hydrogen, helium, hydrogen compounds Orbital Period (year): Orbital Period (year): 29.4 years Rotation Period (day): Rotation Period (day): 10.6 hours Axis Tilt: Axis Tilt: 26.7 ˚ Average Surface Temperature: Average Surface Temperature: 95 K Click for more info

Saturn, continued Moons: Moons: 60 Rings: Rings: yes Gravity compared to Earth: Gravity compared to Earth: 1.13  Go Back

Uranus Average distance from the Sun: Average distance from the Sun: 19.2 AU Radius: Radius: 25,559 km Mass: Mass: 14.5 times Earth’s mass Composition: Composition: hydrogen, helium, hydrogen compounds Orbital Period (year): Orbital Period (year): 83.8 years Rotation Period (day): Rotation Period (day): 17.2 hours Axis Tilt: Axis Tilt: 97.9 ˚ Average Surface Temperature: Average Surface Temperature: 60 K Click for more info

Uranus, continued Moons: Moons: 27 Rings: Rings: yes Gravity compared to Earth: Gravity compared to Earth: 1.09  Go Back

Neptune Average distance from the Sun: Average distance from the Sun: 30.1 AU Radius: Radius: 24,764 km Mass: Mass: 17.1 times Earth’s mass Composition: Composition: hydrogen, helium, hydrogen compounds Orbital Period (year): Orbital Period (year): 165 years Rotation Period (day): Rotation Period (day): 16.1 hours Axis Tilt: Axis Tilt: 29.6 ˚ Average Surface Temperature: Average Surface Temperature: 60 K Click for more info

Neptune, continued Moons: Moons: 13 Rings: Rings: yes Gravity compared to Earth: Gravity compared to Earth: 1.43  Go Back

Pluto Average distance from the Sun: Average distance from the Sun: 39.5 AU Radius: Radius: 1,160 km Mass: Mass: times Earth’s mass Composition: Composition: rocks, ices Orbital Period (year): Orbital Period (year): 248 years Rotation Period (day): Rotation Period (day): 6.39 days Axis Tilt: Axis Tilt: ˚ Average Surface Temperature: Average Surface Temperature: 40 K Kupier belt Click for more info

Pluto, continued Moons: Moons: 3 Rings: Rings: no Gravity compared to Earth: Gravity compared to Earth: 0.04 Because it’s so small and has such an abnormal orbit, Pluto cannot really be classified as a planet. dwarf planet dwarf planet In 2006, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) voted to classify Pluto as a dwarf planet. dwarf planet Likely, Pluto is a larger comet which originated in the Kupier belt. Kupier belt Kupier belt  Other objects, like the dwarf planet Eris discovered in 2005, are being discovered in our solar system and classified as Kupier belt objects. Kupier belt  Go Back

Dwarf Planet Defined by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) as being “any object that orbits the Sun and is large enough for its own gravity to have made it nearly round in shape but that has not cleared its orbital neighborhood of other objects.” asteroid belt asteroid belt  The largest object in the asteroid belt, Ceres, is classified as a dwarf planet by this definition.asteroid belt  Go Back

The Asteroid Belt The region between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter in which asteroids are heavily concentrated Separates the Jovian (gas) planets from the terrestrial (rocky) planets Asteroids in the belt orbit the Sun in the same direction as planets, but on a more elliptical and inclined orbit than the planets. The large number of asteroids and other debris in this region is hypothesized to be the left-over remnants of rocks that never managed to accumulate into a planet.  Go Back

Kupier Belt Pronounced (k ī′ p ə r), rhymes with “piper” A comet-rich region of our solar system spanning from AU from the Sun Kupier belt comets travel in the same direction and relatively the same plane as planets  Go Back

Oort Cloud A huge, spherical region centered on the Sun, extending perhaps half- way to the nearest stars, in which trillions of comets orbit the Sun with random inclinations, orbital directions, and eccentricities. Extends to about 50,000 AU

The Asteroid Belt The region between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter in which asteroids are heavily concentrated Separates the Jovian (gas) planets from the terrestrial (rocky) planets Asteroids in the belt orbit the Sun in the same direction as planets, but on a more elliptical and inclined orbit than the planets. The large number of asteroids and other debris in this region is hypothesized to be the left-over remnants of rocks that never managed to accumulate into a planet. Click for more info

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