Our Solar System
The Sun● The sun is the biggest,
brightest, and hottest object in our solar system.
● The sun is an ordinary star.
● The sun is made of about 70% hydrogen and 28% helium.
● It makes up almost 99% of our solar system’s mass!
The Inner Planets
The Outer Planets
THE INNER PLANETS● Rocky, cratered surfaces ● smaller than outer planets ● closer to the Sun ● very few moons compared to the outer
planets
Mercury(Roman messenger god)
● Mercury is solid and is covered with craters.
● has no atmosphere, but water vapour has been found.
● The smallest planet.
Venus (Roman goddess of beauty) ● It’s almost the same size
as Earth. ● The surface is rocky and
very hot with volcanoes and mountains.
● The atmosphere completely hides the surface and traps the heat.
● Days are longer than years!
Earth● Earth is the fifth largest planet and the third
from the sun. ● Liquid covers almost 75 percent of the Earth’s
surface. ● The Earth has one moon.
Mars(Roman god of war)
● Mars is the fourth planet from the sun.
● Mars has a thin atmosphere that contains mostly carbon dioxide.
● Mars has two small moons, rust in the soil, and maybe life.
THE OUTER PLANETS● Gassy atmosphere with no solid surface ● Very large compared to inner ● Far away from the Sun ● Have rings ● Have numerous moons
Jupiter(Roman ruler of gods/goddesses)
● The largest planet. ● Gas giant. It is a ball
of liquid surrounded by gas – mostly hydrogen and helium.
● The Great Red Spot, a huge storm of swirling gas, has lasted for hundreds of years.
● 60+ moons
Saturn (Roman god of agriculture)
● Saturn is the second largest gas giant planet. ● 60+ known moons. ● Saturn’s rings are not solid; they are composed
of small particles. ● The rings are very thin. Though they’re 250,000
km or more in diameter, they’re less than 1 km thick.
Uranus(Greek god of the sky)
● Ice giant ● Looks blue-green
because of a methane in its atmosphere.
● 27 known moons. ● Has a faint ring
system. ● Rotates on a 90o tilt!
Neptune(Roman god of the sea)
● Ice giant ● temperature of
-353oC. ● Like Uranus, the
methane gives Neptune its colour.
Dwarf Planets● There are 5 bodies to small to be planets ● They orbit (but not circular) the sun ● They have a spherical shape
eg Pluto, Eris, Makemake, Haumea, Ceres
Other Bodies● Asteroids -Rocky / metallic objects that
orbit the sun (Asteroid belt, or Kuiper Belt)
Other Bodies● Meteoroid- small rock/metallic pieces
drawn in by the Earth’s gravity.
Chicxulub Crater, Mexico 65 mya
Other Bodies● Comets-chunks of rocks and ice that orbit
the sun. eg. Halley’s comet (76 yrs)
Hale-Bopp (2380 yrs)