WARM UP Can you list the planets in order?

Our Solar System

Space Distances To measure distances in space, we use the astronomical unit (AU). 1 AU = 150 million kilometers 1 AU = the average distance between the Earth and the Sun. 1 AU

Solar System Tour Going on a tour through our solar system, we’ll visit 9 planets and some other things too!

Comets Comets are made up of dust and frozen gases such as ice. Sometimes, a comet swings too close to the sun. The suns radiation vaporizes some of the material, spurting gas and dust…this looks like a tail.

Mercury Mercury is 0.4 AU from the Sun. Like our moon, it’s surface is marked with craters from meteorite impacts. 88 days to orbit the Sun (1)

Venus Venus is 0.7 AU from the Sun. It is surrounded by thick clouds. The clouds create an extreme greenhouse making it the hotest planet at 470 *C (880*F) 225 days to orbit the Sun

Earth Earth is 150 million km from the Sun (1 AU). Earth is the only planet in the solar system with life! Here, surface temperatures allow H 2 O to exist as solid, liquid and gas. 365 days to orbit the Sun

Mars Mars is the 1.5 AU from the Sun. It has seasons and polar ice caps. Evidence that there was once liquid water on Mars. Mars gets its red color from iron oxide 687 days to orbit the Sun

Asteroid Belt The asteroid belt is a band of rocks that lies between the outer planets (the gas giants) and inner planets (the terrestrial planets). –It lies between Mars and Jupiter

Jupiter Jupiter is 5.2 AU from the Sun. It is the largest planet in the solar system with many moons. It has a Great Red Spot; a giant storm that’s larger than Pluto. 12 years to orbit the Sun Great Red Spot

Saturn Saturn is 9.5 AU from the Sun. It is large and has a ring system. The rings are made up of millions of particles of dust, ice, and rock years to orbit the Sun

Uranus Uranus is 19.2 AU from the Sun. It has a ring system and many moons (27 that we know of). Uranus spins horizontal on it’s plane of orbit. (like it is laying down) 84 years to orbit the Sun

Neptune Neptune is 30.6 AU from the Sun. Its atmosphere is made of methane gas which give s the planet a blue- green color. Sometimes, Neptune’s orbit crosses with Pluto’s and therefore switches places with Pluto. 165 years to orbit the Sun

Pluto Pluto is usually 39.5 AU from the Sun. It is a small, rocky “dwarf planet” with a frozen crust. Pluto is smaller than the Moon. 248 years to orbit the Sun