1. Age of our solar system is 4.6 billion years old.
The Solar System
Section I
The Solar System
Age of our solar system is 4.6 billion years old.
The solar system is made up of 8 planets since Pluto has been denoted to and many smaller objects that orbit the sun.

2. Ideas about the night sky have changed over time
Earth-centered model ( Geocentric theory)– early Greeks thought planets, Sun, Moon, and stars revolved around Earth

3. Sun-Centered model (Heliocentric)
Nicholas Copernicus and Galileo Galilei observed that the moon revolved around Earth and that Earth and other planets revolved around the Sun

4. Modern View
solar system includes Sun, eight planets, many small objects.

5. NEBULA THEORY (origin of solar system)
a nebula of gas, ice, and dust slowly formed in space

6. A cloud of material in the nebula slowly rotated in space

8. The cloud became more dense, rotated faster, heated up, and flattened to form a disk.

9. As the cloud contracted, it grew warmer, triggering a nuclear fusion reaction that created the Sun Nuclear Fusion happens in the Sun. Nuclear Fusion is a process that occurs when atoms combine to form a new element and release energy.

10. The leftover matter became the planets and asteroids
First four inner planets – small and rocky with iron cores.
last four outer planets – large and lightweight …

11. Planet orbits are elliptical and the Sun is not directly in the center of the orbits.

12. Section II The Inner Planets also known as the terrestrial planets.
What is a major reason the inner planets have smaller levels of Helium and Hydrogen? Answer: These are lighter gases so the Sun’s energy burns off the lighter gases.

14. Mercury Closest to the Sun, smallest planet
Difficult to observe with the naked eye because it is so close to the sun
Mercury, Venus,
And Jupiter have
Virtually no axial tilt

15. Weak magnetic field suggests an iron core
Has many craters and high cliffs
no true atmosphere, so surface temperatures range from very hot to very cold
Fastest Planet
No Moons

16. Venus Sometimes called Earth’s twin
second from the Sun and similar to Earth in size and mass

17. extremely dense atmosphere of clouds
Carbon dioxide traps solar energy
Venus has a very dense atmosphere of C02
Hottest planet
No Moon

18. The dense atmosphere of CO2 causes an intense greenhouse effect
Results in surface temperatures between 450°C and 475°C
Venus and Uranus rotate clockwise (backwards or retrograde). Most planets spin counter-clockwise (direct rotation)

19. Earth
average distance between Earth and the Sun is 150 million km/ 93 million miles or 1 Astronomical Unit (AU)
Water exists on surface as solid, liquid, and gas which supports life
Earth also has high amount of oxygen (21%) in its atmosphere so animal life is possible
Earth has 1 moon

20. More than 70% of surface covered with water
Atmosphere protects surface from most meteors and Sun’s radiation. This is why the Earth does not experience as many meteor strikes as the Moon.

21. Mars
Called red planet because iron oxide in rocks makes them reddish-yellow
Polar ice caps made mostly of frozen carbon dioxide and frozen water
Atmosphere is very thin
2 moons

22. Has largest volcano in the solar system

23. Soil shows NO evidence of life………..
perhaps……………

24. Has gullies and deposits of soil and rocks, which may indicate the presence of liquid groundwater

25. Thin atmosphere of mostly carbon dioxide
Strong winds caused by differences in temperature between day and night

27. Mars is tilted on its axis, which causes seasons

28. MarsTwo small moons, Phobos and Deimos

29. Volcanoes Only the inner planets have volcanoes
Venus and Earth are the only ones that have active volcanoes.
Mercury and Mars have extinct volcanoes.
Olympus Mons is found on Mars
The outer planets are gas giants and do not have land masses on which to have a volcano

30. Where is the asteroid belt located?
Answer-between Mars and Jupiter
What is the asteroid belt?
Answer-rocky objects measuring mm
To Km in diameter

31. Section III The Outer Planets also called Gas Giants
Have high concentrations of hydrogen

32. Jupiter
fifth planet from the Sun, largest planet in the solar system

33. Below atmosphere, liquid hydrogen and helium are suspected
Solid rocky core may exist below liquid level

34. The Great Red Spot is the most spectacular of Jupiter’s many constant high-pressure gas storms
This storm is
Several times
the size of
Earth.

35. Jupiter
Earth

36. Jupiter Has rings

37. Has at least 61 moons – four are large and have atmospheres (Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto)

38. Io
is very volcanically active; the closest large moon to Jupiter

39. Europa
composed mostly of rock; may have an ocean of water under a thick layer of ice

40. Ganymede
largest moon in solar system, even larger than planet Mercury

41. Callisto
cratered rock and ice crust may surround a salty ocean and rock core

42. Saturn
Sixth planet from the sun, second largest in the solar system, lowest density

43. Thick outer atmosphere of hydrogen, helium, ammonia, methane, and water vapor

44. Might have a small, rocky core

45. Each large ring composed of thousands of ringlets of ice and rock particles

46. Saturn Has at least 31 moons

47. Saturn’s Largest moon, Titan, is larger than the planet Mercury
Thick clouds on Titan prevent scientists from seeing surface…….

48. Uranus Seventh planet from the Sun, large, and gaseous Tilt of Uranus
Angle is 90
degrees

49. Uranus has thin, dark rings
Atmosphere of hydrogen, helium, and methane
Methane makes the planet bluish-green in color
22 moons

50. Axis of rotation nearly parallel to plane of orbit

51. Neptune
eighth planet from the sun, large and gaseous

52. bluish-green colored atmosphere similar to that of Uranus
Storms on Neptune reveal an active and rapidly changing atmosphere
has at least 11 moons, of which pinkish Triton is largest

53. Pluto Pluto is a dwarf planet located within the Kuiper Belt.
Pluto is small and nonluminous which is why powerful telescopes have problems detecting Pluto.

54. A. Comet: dust and rock particles combined with frozen water, methane, and ammonia.

55. 1. Halley’s comet: orbits Sun every 76 years.

56. 2. Oort Cloud: large group of comets surrounding solar system beyond Pluto.

57. 4. Comet structure: large dirty snowball of frozen rock and ice.

58. Comets a. Ice and dust vaporize as comet nears Sun.
b. Vaporized material forms bright cloud called coma around comet nucleus.
c. Solar wind pushes on gas and dust in the coma, causing the particles to form a tail that always points away from the Sun.
d. Eventually, most of the ice in the comet’s nucleus vaporizes, leaving only small particles.

59. Comets vaporize and break up after passing close to the Sun several times. When the nucleus breaks up, pieces spread out. The dust and rock fragments are called Meteoroids.

60. B. (1.) Meteoroid: name given to small pieces of comet when they move through space.

61. B. (2.) Meteor: small meteoroid that burns up in Earth’s atmosphere.

62. B. (3.) Meteor Showers: occur when Earth’s orbit passes through a group of meteoroids that enter the atmosphere.

63. B. (4.) Meteorite: meteoroid that strikes Earth.

64. C. Asteroid: rock similar to that which formed planets.

65. C. (1.) Most asteroids lie in an asteroid belt located between Mars and Jupiter.

66. Asteroid Info:
Jupiter’s gravity may have kept these asteroids from forming a planet.
some planets’ moons may be asteroids pulled from the asteroid belt.
asteroid sizes range from very tiny to 940 km in diameter.

67. What is a shooting star?
It is NOT a star!!
Answer-Meteor