Download Venus and Uranus – The Strange Twins

Objective – After reading an article, I can compare and contrast two planets.
Venus and Uranus – The Strange Twins
Venus and Uranus are very far apart. One is made of rock and one is a gas giant. But, these two
planets share one thing in common. They both rotate backwards.
Almost all objects in the Solar System (Sun, moons, planets, asteroids, etc.) rotate
counterclockwise. Six of the planets rotate counterclockwise. What happened to these two
planets? To answer that question, we have to go back to the beginning of the Solar System.
While the planets were forming, more than our eight planets formed in the early history of the
Solar System. Large bodies formed, but were in unstable orbits around the Sun. Many collisions
between the large bodies occurred.
For example, Earth was hit by a body the size of Mars.
The result of the collision was the Earth’s axis being tilted
23.5o and the formation of the Moon.
South Pole – Venus
North Pole – Venus
A large body also hit Venus. The collision was so violent, it knocked
Venus upside down. The North Pole of Venus points south and the
South Pole of Venus points north. If you were on Venus, the Sun would
rise in the west and set in the east. On Earth, the Sun rises in the East
and sets in the west.
This is why Venus rotates backwards. A collision with a large body
knocked it upside down!
~1~
Objective – After reading an article, I can compare and contrast two planets.
The same thing happened to Uranus. A large body collided with Uranus. Instead of knocking
Uranus upside down, it knocked Uranus on its side.
The North Pole points below what appears to be Uranus’s equator and
the South Pole points above what appears to be Uranus’s equator.
NORTH POLE
SOUTH POLE
SOUTH POLE
NORTH POLE
Uranus also appears to rotate backwards (clockwise).
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Objective – After reading an article, I can compare and contrast two planets.
Name ______________________________________________________________________
Venus and Uranus – The Strange Twins
After reading the short article, answer the questions.
1. In which direction to almost all of the objects in the Solar System rotate?
a. Clockwise
b. Counterclockwise
2. Which two planets orbit clockwise?
a. Mercury and Venus
b. Earth and Uranus
c. Mars and Neptune
d. Venus and Uranus
3. What happened to cause these planets to rotate clockwise?
a. That’s the way they always rotated.
b. They originally rotate counterclockwise, stopped, and began to rotate
clockwise.
c. They were hit by large bodies in the early history of the Solar System.
d. All of the above.
4. In what direction does Venus’s North Pole point?
a. East
b. North
c. South
d. West
5. When the object hit Uranus, what happened?
a. It caused Uranus to flip upside down.
b. It knocked Uranus on its side.
c. It almost destroyed Uranus.
6. On Venus in which direction would the Sun appear to rise and set?
a. Rise in the west, set in the east.
b. Rise in the north, set in the south.
Scoring
Guide
6–4
5 – 3.5
4–3
3–2
1–1
0–0
c. Rise in the east, set in the west.
d. Rise in the south, set in the north.
~3~
Objective – After reading an article, I can compare and contrast two planets.
Venus and Uranus – The Strange Twins Key I
1. In which direction to almost all of the objects in the Solar System rotate?
b. Counterclockwise
2. Which two planets orbit clockwise?
d. Venus and Uranus
3. What happened to cause these planets to rotate clockwise?
c. They were hit by large bodies in the early history of the Solar System.
4. In what direction does Venus’s North Pole point?
c. South
5. When the object hit Uranus, what happened?
b. It knocked Uranus on its side.
6. On Venus in which direction would the Sun appear to rise and set?
a. Rise in the west, set in the east.
~4~
Objective – After reading an article, I can compare and contrast two planets.
Venus and Uranus – The Strange Twins Key II
1. b
2. d
3. c
4. c
5. b (3 choices)
6. a (2 choices)
~5~
Objective – After reading an article, I can compare and contrast two planets.
Venus and Uranus – The Strange Twins
Scoring Guide
6–4
5 – 3.5
4–3
3–2
1–1
0–0
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