Download Solar Systems

Earth & Our
Solar System
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• Recap of KS3
• Neptune
• The Solar System
• Pluto
• The Sun
• Asteroids
• Mercury
• Meteorites
• Venus
• Comets
• Earth
• Solar System, Galaxies & The Universe
• Mars
• Gravity
• Jupiter
• Satellites
• Saturn
• Red Shift
• Uranus
• The Life Cycle of a Star
Recap of KS3
Earth in Space
A Day is the time for one spin
What keeps the moon in orbit
around the Earth?
GRAVITY
The Earth is divided up into the northern
hemisphere and the southern hemisphere:
The axis
of the
earth is
tilted.
This
gives us
Seasons
Equator
Autumn
Spring
Winter
Summer
Winter
Summer
Spring
Autumn
We see planets and the moon
because they reflect sunlight:
The sun is different – it produces its own light.
We see stars because the light
enters our eyes directly - Stars
are luminous objects (planets are
non- luminous).
The sun is different – it produces its own light.
Solar Systems, Galaxies and the Universe
OUR SUN is one of
millions of stars that
orbit the centre of…
THE MILKY WAY
THE UNIVERSE
(which is one of a
billion galaxies that
orbit AND move away
from the centre of…)
Europe From Space
(Can you spot where you
live?)
Where is This?
It wasn’t the Moon!
Asteroids have hit the Earth
thousands of times in the past.
Did you know?- an asteroid the
size of your local mountain killed
the dinosaurs
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The Solar
System
The Solar System
• The Sun
• 9 Planets (and their
moons)
• Asteroids
• Meteorites and
• comets
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The Sun
The Sun
• Is a Star at the
centre of the
Solar System.
• It is about 5
Billion years old
• Diameter 1.4
million km
• Core
temperature 15
million oC
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Mercury
Mercury
• This is the nearest planet
to the Sun. It moves
faster through space than
any other planet (Orbit =
88 days)
• Rotates so slowly that its
day is longer than its year!)
• Has the most extreme
temperature variations of
any planet (from –183oC on
its dark side to 427 oC on
the sunlit side)
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Venus
Venus
• Rocky planet and the
second closest to the Sun
• Spins backwards
• The brightest and
hottest planet in the sky
(Temps about 480 oC)
• It ‘Rains’ sulphuric acid
(the greenhouse effect
‘gone wild’)
• Winds reach 360
km/hour
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Earth
Earth
• 3rd Rock from the Sun
• The only planet known to
support life
• Protective atmosphere
blocks out harmful
radiation
• 70% covered by water
• 4.5 billion years old
• We travel through space
at a speed of 108,000
km/h
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Mars
Mars
• Known as the Red Planet
• Has the largest volcano
in the solar system at
27km high!
• Has 2 small moons
• Rotation of 24.5 hours
• Atmosphere is 95%
carbon dioxide
• This is the first picture
that has been sent back
from the surface of
another planet
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Jupiter
Jupiter
• Largest planet in the
Solar System (300
times bigger than
Earth)
• 28 moons
• It is a gas planet and
has no solid surface
• Has a giant storm -the
‘Red Spot’ with 250
mph winds (twice the
size of Earth)
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• Jupiter is SO big, all
of the other planets
could fit into it!
Saturn
Saturn
• A Gas planet
• Famous for its rings
(made from rocks &
ice particles)
• At least 30 moons
• Its winds blow in
different directions
but can reach 1,500
km/h
• Saturn is less dense
than water. This
means it will float on
water!
Which Is Your Favourite?
Saturn is pretty cool!!!!
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Uranus
Uranus
• Third largest planet
• Blue/ green colour due
to traces of methane in
the atmosphere
• The only planet to spin
on its side
• 11 rings
• 21 moons
• Another gas planet
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Neptune
Neptune
• Has the fastest winds in
the solar system (up to
2,000 km/h)
• 8 moons
• Triton is the coldest
object in the solar
system with a
temperature of – 235 oC
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Pluto
Pluto
• Smallest planet in the Solar
System
• Farthest from the Sun
• Only discovered in 1930
• The surface temperature is so
cold (-220 oC) that even the
atmosphere freezes
• It takes 248 years to orbit the
Sun
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Asteroids
Asteroids
• Asteroids are material
left over from the
formation of the Solar
System
• They vary in size from
a pebble to 1,000km in
diameter
• They are found mainly
in the Asteroid Belt
that lies between Mars
& Jupiter
• Some Asteroids are so
big – they have their
own moons Menu
Meteorites
Meteorites
•Meteorites travel
at 9 times the speed
of a bullet
•When they reach
our atmosphere they
‘burn up’ because of
the friction and the
presence of oxygen
in our atmosphere.
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Comets
Comets
• A comet is simply a dirty
snowball made from dust
and ice
• Comets range in size from
between 1km to 10 km.
• Once the Solar System
would have swarmed with
comets. Now they only
visit us occasionally.
• Usually found in the Kuiper
Belt & Oort Cloud
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The Solar System,
Galaxies & The
Universe
Solar Systems, Galaxies and the Universe
OUR SUN is one of
millions of stars that
orbit the centre of…
THE MILKY WAY
(which is one of a
billion galaxies that
orbit AND move away
from the centre of…)
THE UNIVERSE
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Gravity
The Earth Is Kept In Orbit By The
Force Of…
Gravity
(…and by the
fact that is is
moving at a
high velocity)
Gravity (in Detail)
The amount of gravity attracting an object
decreases the further out the object is…
If you double the distance the
gravitational force divides by 4
If you triple the distance the
force divides
F/9by 9
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Satellites
Satellites
A satellite is anything that orbits something else.
The Earth has a natural satellite (– the moon).
The Earth has hundreds of artificial satellites
orbiting around it.
All satellites need two
things in order to stay
in orbit:
• Gravity
• High speed
What Can We Use Satellites For?
1) Observation (e.g. Hubble Space Telescope) –
these are in orbit high above the Earth and can
observe the universe without interference by the
atmosphere.
It can take
pictures like
this….. Each
swirl (and
there are
LOTS in this
picture) is a
GALAXY!
2) Communications (e.g. TV, phone,
car navigational systems) – these satellites are
in “geostationary” orbits. This means that the
satellite always stays above the same point on
the Earth.
3) Monitoring (e.g. weather,
spy satellites) – these satellites
have a “low polar” orbit and may scan
around the Earth several times a day
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Red Shift
If you pass the light through a gas
something different is seen… It is
called Absorption Spectra
This is the
absorption
spectrum
from the Sun
Absorption spectra show which wavelengths
of light are absorbed by the gas (this is
how we know the sun is made of helium).
Light from stars and from the edge of the
universe also shows this “REDSHIFT” which
suggests that everything in the universe is
moving away from a single point.
REDSHIFT
As Star moves away
We see the colours of the spectrum
moving towards the wavelength of RED
Can you explain what each diagram is showing?
A
B
C
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The Life Cycle
of a Star
Stage 1
A nebula is a
collection of dust,
gas and rock.
NEBULAE
Stage 2 PROTOSTAR
This is a NEBULA
Gravity will slowly
pull these particles
together…
Stage 3 MAIN SEQUENCE STAR
(-Like Our Sun)
The attraction forces
pulling the particles inwards
are BALANCED by forces
acting outwards (due to the
huge temperatures inside
the star).
Stars are like nuclear reactors that use
hydrogen as a fuel. During this time it
releases energy.
Stage 4
RED GIANT
Eventually the hydrogen and helium will run out.
When this happens the star will become colder
and redder and start to swell…
Relatively
small star (like
our sun) ….
Star 4 times size of
our SUN…
…becomes a
RED GIANT
… becomes RED
SUPERGIANT
Stage 5 The Star Dies
What happens at this point depends on
the size of the star…
Red Giant
White
Dwarf
Black
Dwarf
2) If the star becomes a RED SUPERGIANT it
will shrink and then EXPLODE, releasing massive
amounts of energy, dust and gas.
Red
Supergiant
Supernova
The dust and gas on the outside of the supernova
are thrown away by the explosion and the
remaining core turns into a NEUTRON STAR.
If the star is big enough it could become a BLACK
HOLE.
Neutron Star
Supernova
Black Hole
Stage 6 Second Generation Stars
Our sun is a “second generation star” because it
contains heavier elements along with hydrogen and
helium. These heavier elements would have been
the products of a previous star that have been
thrown out by a supernova. Heavy elements (such
as GOLD) are also found on Earth.
Just think! …….Next time you wear
GOLD…….it was made in a Supernovae!!!
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