1. The Planets

2. Terrestrial Planets Mercury: 0.383rE 0.055mE Smallest planet
No atmosphere
Too close to sun: burned off
Many craters
No atmosphere to burn meteors
Many asteroids pulled into sun
0.383rE
0.055mE

3. Terrestrial Planets Venus: Most like Earth in size
Large Greenhouse Effect
Due to carbon dioxide
Hottest Planet
Closest to Earth
0.95rE
0.815mE

4. Terrestrial Planets Earth: Only planet with liquid water
Perfect location from sun
Largest terrestrial planet

5. Terrestrial Planets Mars: “the Red Planet” 2 small moons 0.53rE
Due to iron oxide (rust)
2 small moons
0.53rE
0.107mE

6. Gas Giant Planets Note: ALL gas giant planets have rings! Jupiter:
Largest planet
Great Red Spot
Giant Storm
Many Moons
Some almost Earth’s size
10.97rE
318mE

7. Gas Giant Planets Saturn: 2nd Largest planet Visible Rings Most Moons
1000s of them
Made up of rocks and ice
Most Moons
Less dense than water
9.14rE
95.2mE

8. Gas Giant Planets Uranus: Rotates sideways Neptune’s “twin” 3.98rE
14.5mE

9. Gas Giant Planets Neptune: Furthest planet Great Blue Spot
Giant Storm
Coldest Planet
3.86rE
17.1mE

10. Pluto Not considered a planet anymore Now a Dwarf Planet 0.181rE
0.0022mE

11. Other Dwarf Planets There are 5 dwarf planets in total right now.
The largest is Eris (0.182rE, mE) which is almost 100 AU from the Sun.
The closest is Ceres, in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.