3. Our solar neighborhood is an
exciting place. The Solar System is
full of planets, moons, asteroids,
comets, minor planets, and many
other exciting objects. Learn about
Io, the explosive moon that orbits
the planet Jupiter, or explore the
gigantic canyons and deserts on
Mars.
4. The Sun or Sol, is the
star at the centre of our
solar system and is
responsible for the
Earth’s climate and
weather. The Sun is an
almost perfect sphere
with a difference of just
10km in diameter
between the poles and
the equator. The
average radius of the
Sun is 695,508 km
(109.2 x that of the
Earth) of which 20–25%
is the core.
6. THE 8 PLANETS
MERCURY
SATURN
URANUS
VENUS
JUPITER
NEPTUNE
EARTH
MARS
7. Mercury is the closest planet to
the Sun and due to its proximity it
is not easily seen except during
twilight. For every two orbits of
the Sun Mercury completes three
rotations about its axis and up
until 1965 it was thought that the
same side of Mercury constantly
faced the Sun. Thirteen times a
century Mercury can be observed
from Earth passing across the face
of the Sun in an event called a
transit, the next will occur on the
9th May 2016.
8. Venus is the second planet
from the Sun and is the second
brightest object in the night sky
after the Moon. Named after
the Roman goddess of love and
beauty, Venus is the second
largest terrestrial planet and is
sometimes referred to as the
Earth’s sister planet due the
their similar size and mass. The
surface of the planet is
obscured by an opaque layer of
clouds made up of sulfuric acid.
9. earth is the third planet from the
Sun and is the largest of the
terrestrial planets. Unlike the
other planets in the solar system
that are named after classic
deities the Earth’s name comes
from the Anglo-Saxon
worderda which means ground
or soil. The Earth was formed
approximately 4.54 billion years
ago and is the only known planet
to support life.
: -88 to 58°C
10. Mars is the fourth
planet from the Sun.
Named after the
Roman god of war, and
often described as the
“Red Planet” due to its
reddish appearance.
Mars is a terrestrial
planet with a thin
atmosphere composed
primarily of carbon
dioxide.
11. Jupiter is the fifth planet
from the Sun and is the
largest planet in the solar
system, like the other four
outer planets Jupiter is a
gas giant.
12. Saturn is the sixth planet
from the Sun and is named
after the not known to exist
until Galileo first observed
them in 1610. Roman god of
wealth. Saturn is the second
largest planet in the solar
system and is best known
for its fabulous rings. The
rings were
13. Uranus is the seventh planet
from the Sun and was the
first planet to be discovered
with the use of a telescope.
Uranus’ most unique feature
is that its axis sideways in
comparison to other planets
i.e. its north and south poles
are in line with where other
planets have their equators.
Uranus is named after the
Greek god of the sky.
14. Neptune is the eighth
planet from the Sun and
the smallest of the gas
giants. Neptune was the
first planet found by
mathematical prediction
after unexpected changes
in the orbit of Uranus
were observed. Neptune
is named after the Roman
god of the sea.