Download Solar System Data Sheet

Solar System Data Sheet
(Source: http://solarsystem.nasa.gov; http://solarviews.com)
The Sun
Diameter
(miles)
Surface
Interior
Temperature Temperature
Rotation
Composition
Sunspots
Prominences
(length of
Solar
Flares
“day”)
864,000
11,000o F
28,000,000o F
Sunspot
27 Earth Days
(equator)
36 Earth Days
(poles)
Hydrogen and
Helium
Prominence
Cooler areas
on the Sun
(6,000o F).
Can be as
large as 50,000
mi.
Hot gasses
extending
from surface.
Violent
explosions in
the Sun’s
atmosphere.
Solar Flare
1
The Solar System
Planet
Rocky Distance Revolution Rotation Diameter Moons
or Gas
from
(year)
(day)
Sun
(Earth
(Earth
(millions
days or
hours or
of mi)
years)
days)
Rings Temperature Atmosphere
(mi)
Mercury
Rocky
36
88 days
59 days
3,100
0
No
-300o F. to
800 o F.
Very, very
thin
Venus
Rocky
67
225 days
243 Days
7,500
0
No
900 o F.
CO2
Very thick
Earth
Rocky
93
365 days
(1 year)
23 hrs
56 min
7,900
1
No
-125o F. to
125o F.
Nitrogen
Oxygen
Thick
Mars
Rocky
141
687 Days
24 hrs
40 min
4,300
2
No
-125o F. to
32o F.
CO2
Very thin
Jupiter
Gas
Giant
484
12 years
9 hrs
50 min
88,500
63+
Yes
faint
-235o F.
Hydrogen
Helium
Very Thick
Saturn
Gas
Giant
886
29 years
9 hrs
40 min
65,000
63+
Yes
-288o F.
Hydrogen
Helium
Very Thick
2
The Solar System
Planet
Rocky Distance Revolution Rotation Diameter Moons
or Gas
from
(year)
(day)
Sun
(Earth
(Earth
(millions
days or
hours or
of mi)
years)
days)
Rings
Temperature Atmosphere
(mi)
Uranus
Gas
Giant
1,800
84 years
17 hrs
34 min
31,000
27
Yes
faint
-360o F.
Hydrogen
Helium
Methane
Very Thick
Neptune
Gas
Giant
2,800
165 years
15 hrs
10 min
30,000
13
Yes
faint
-360o F.
Hydrogen
Helium
Methane
Very Thick
3
Classifying the Planets








Rocky Planets – Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars
Gas Giants – Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
Classical Planets (seen without a telescope) – Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn
Modern Planets (seen with a telescope) – Uranus, Neptune
Inferior Planets (having an orbit between Earth and the Sun) – Mercury, Venus
Superior Planets (having an orbit farther from the Sun than Earth) – Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
Giant Planets (larger than Earth) - Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
Small Planets (smaller than Earth) – Mercury, Venus, Mars
Dwarf Planets
Body
Diameter
Distance
Rotation
Revolution
(miles)
from Sun
(Day)
(Year)
Moons
Rings
Temperature Atmosphere
(millions of
miles)
Eris
1,500
3,500
(closest)**
12,700
(farthest)
Unknown
557 Earth
Years
1
No
-406o F.
None
1,400
2,700
(closest)**
4,600
(farthest)
6.4 Earth
Days
248 Earth
Years
3
No
-380o F.
Nitrogen,
CO2, and
Methane
(Thin)
(Icy)
(plutoid*)
Pluto
(Icy/Rocky)
(plutoid*)
*Plutoid – a dwarf planet outside the orbit of Neptune.
**Closest – closest approach to Sun; Farthest – farthest distance from Sun.
4
Dwarf Planets
Body
Diameter
Distance
Rotation
Revolution
(miles)
from Sun
(Day)
(Year)
Moons
Rings
Temperature Atmosphere
(millions of
miles)
Haumea
(howMAY-uh)
(Icy/Rocky)
(Eggshaped)
1,200 x
600
3,300
(closest)**
4,800
(farthest)
3 hrs 55
min
285 Earth
Years
2
No
-402o F.
?
Between
800 –
1,200
3,500
(closest)**
5,000
(farthest)
?
310 Earth
Years
0
No
-406o F.
Methane
590
280
9 hours
4.6 Earth
Years
0
No
-100o F.
(Sun high
overhead)
None
(plutoid)*
MakeMake
(Mah-Key)
(Icy)
(plutoid)*
Ceres
(Rocky)
*Plutoid – a dwarf planet outside the orbit of Neptune.
**Closest – closest approach to Sun; Farthest – farthest distance from Sun.
5
Asteroids
Composition
Locations
Distance from
(what they’re
Sun (millions of
made of)
miles)
Irregular rocky
bodies
Most found
between orbits of
Mars & Jupiter
167,000,000 to
418,000,000
Number
Size Range
Two Largest
Over 150,000
330 mi to around
100 yards
Vesta – 330 mi
Pallas – 300 mi
(Note – Asteroids cannot be seen without a telescope.)
Meteoroids/Meteors/Meteorites
Where They Come
Size Range
From
Most come from the
Asteroid Belt.
Few come from particles
left from comets when
Earth crosses their path.
Definition of a
Definition of a Meteor
Meteoroid
Grain of sand to
around 100 yards.
Grain or rock that
is travelling in
space.
Definition of a
Meteorite
Grain or rock that has
entered the atmosphere
(sometimes called
“shooting” or “falling”
star.)
A meteor that is large
enough to survive the
trip through the
atmosphere and hit
the Earth’s surface.
6
Kuiper Belt Objects
Composition
Locations
Distance from
(what they’re
Sun (millions of
made of)
miles)
Icy bodies
Outside Neptune’s
orbit.
3,000,000,000 to
5,200,000,000
Number
Size Range
Two Largest
Estimated at least 1,500 miles to 100 Eris – 1,500 miles
100,000 62 miles
yards.
Pluto – 1,400 miles
or larger.
(Note – Kuiper Belt Objects cannot be seen without a telescope.)
Comets
Composition (what
Location of Comets
they’re made of)
Water ice, dry ice,
ammonia ice, dirt, and
rocks.
Sometimes called
“dirty snowballs” or
“icy mudballs.”
Distance from Sun
Number
Parts of a Comet
(miles)
Found in the Oort
Cloud. (Oort Cloud
named after Jan Oort
who proposed its
existence [hasn’t been
confirmed].)
From 5,000,000,000
(outside the orbit of
Neptune) to
6,000,000,000,000
(one light year)
Nucleus – The “dirty
Over
1,000,000,000,000 snowball.”
Coma – Dense cloud of
vaporized ices and dirt
that surrounds Nucleus.
Tail – Gases and other
particles blown off the
comet by the Solar Wind
(particles from the Sun).
Always points away from
the Sun.
(Note – Some comets can be seen without a telescope; a telescope is needed to see most comets.)
7