Download Mercury is the first planet from the sun. Named by

By: Radhika Raman
MERCURY
About the Planet: Mercury
• Mercury is the first planet from the sun.
• Named by Greeks after the fleet-footed
messenger god Mercury.
• takes approximately 88 days to orbit around
the sun.
• Average surface temperature is around 440
Kelvins, but has risen well over into the 700’s.
•
Mercury’s equatorial diameter is around
4879.4 km.
• No t known to have any satellites, or moons,
or any life forms.
• Early astronomers believed Mercury to be two
planets, referring to it as both Hermes and
Apollo at different times of day. It was
Pythagoras who first suggested Mercury was
a single planet.
VENUS
About the Planet: Venus
• Venus is the second planet from the sun.
• Named after the Roman goddess Venus
(Greek: Aprohdite), of love and beauty.
• Takes approximately 225 days to orbit
around the sun.
• Venus has an average surface temperature
of around 737 Kelvins, but often rises above
that.
• Its equatorial diameter is around 12,103.7
km.
• Venus currently has no known satellites, or
moons. Venus has no signs of known life.
• Due to its brightness, Venus is often referred
to as the morning star, or the evening star.
EARTH
About the Planet: Earth
• Earth is the third planet from the sun.
• Name from the Roman goddess Tellus. Tellus
was the goddess of the earth, thus giving the
planet Earth its name.
• Takes Earth approximately 365 days to orbit
around the sun.
• Has an average temperature of around 287
Kelvins.
• The equatorial diameter of the Earth is
12,756.270 km.
• Has one known satellite, or moon, Luna.
• Earth is currently the only planet known to
hold life and water that is not frozen.
MARS
About the Planet: Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the sun. It
got its name after the Roman god of war,
Mars. This is because of its apparent red
color in the night sky, also giving it the
nickname of the “red planet.” It takes
Mars around 687 days to complete its
orbit around the sun. Mars has an
average surface temperature of 210
Kelvins, and an equatorial diameter of 6,
804.9 km. Mars has two known satellites,
or moons, which are Phobos and
Deimos. Mars is the only planet other
than Earth that scientists today think life
could ever exist on.
JUPITER
About the Planet: Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the sun. It is
named after the Roman god, Jupiter, who
held the same place Zeus did in Greek
mythology. This might have something to do
with the fact that Jupiter was the greatest
God to the Romans, and Jupiter, is the
largest planet in the solar system. It takes
Jupiter approximately 4,333 days to
complete its orbit around the sun, and has
an average surface temperature of 152
Kelvins. The equatorial diameter of Jupiter is
142,984 km. Jupiter has 63 known moons or
satellites, with Ganymede, its largest moon,
at 5,268 km in width.
SATURN
About the Planet: Saturn
Saturn is the sixth planet from the sun.
Saturn is named after the Roman god
Saturn, known as Cronus in Greek
mythology, often associated with the
sickle. Saturn is the second largest planet
in the solar system. Saturn’s revolutionary
period is 10,756 days long. The average
surface temperature of Saturn is 143
Kelvins. Saturn has an equatorial diameter
of 120,536 km. Saturn has 49 confirmed
satellites, or moons, with its largest moon,
Titan, bigger than the planet Pluto. Saturn
has a total of 15 rings around it, making it
one of the more visually appealing planets.
URANUS
About the Planet: Uranus
Uranus is the seventh planet from the sun. It
was discovered on March 13, 1781. Uranus is
the third largest planet in the solar system by
diameter. Uranus is named after the Greek
god Ouranos, god of the sky. It takes Uranus
approximately 30,707 days to complete its
orbit around the sun. Uranus has an average
surface temperature of 68 Kelvins. The
equatorial diameter of Uranus is 51,118 km.
Uranus has a total of 27 known satellites or
moons, with one of its most unique being
Miranda, with many grooves. Uranus has a
total of eleven rings, which are nearly
impossible to see from Earth, but can be
viewed at certain times, when the rings are
blocking stars behind them. Uranus currently
has no known signs of life.
NEPTUNE
About the Planet: Neptune
Neptune is the eighth planet from the sun.
It was discovered on September 23, 1846.
Neptune got its name from the Roman
god of the sea. Neptune sometimes
becomes the ninth planet from the sun
due to Pluto’s orbit. It takes Neptune
approximately 60,223 days to complete its
orbit around the sun. Neptune has an
average surface temperature of 53
Kelvins. The equatorial diameter of
Neptune is 49,528 km. Neptune currently
has 13 known satellites, or moons.
Neptune has dark, faint rings, and
currently is not known to hold life.
PLUTO
About the Planet: Pluto
Pluto is the ninth planet from the sun. It was
discovered on February 18, 1930. Ever since
its discovery, there has been controversy
over whether or not this miniscule planet is in
fact a planet or not. Naming Pluto was
difficult, but finally it was decided that Pluto
be named after the Roman god Pluto, or
Hades in Greek mythology. It takes Pluto
90,613 days to complete its orbit around the
sun. Pluto has an average surface
temperature of 44 Kelvins, and an equatorial
diameter of 2,390 km. Pluto is by far the
smallest planet in the solar system and has
one satellite or moon, Charon. Not much is
known about the far-off planet.