Download what is in the solar system? - Istituto Comprensivo Nord di Prato

ISTITUTO COMPRENSIVO
“Claudio Puddu”
SCUOLA SECONDARIA
“Don Bosco”
THE SOLAR
SYSTEM
As you know, the planet we live on, the Earth revolves
around the Sun without stopping. You will know also
that it is not the only one: there are seven other planets,
plus their satellites, asteroids and comets. All these
elements make up the largest planetary system that we
call the Solar System
WHAT IS IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM?
Let's take a trip through the solar system, starting
from the sun. The sun is the center of the Solar
System. It is a yellow star of average size; the fact
that it appears the brightest star of all is due to its
proximity to the Earth: it is far from us "only" 150
million kilometers.
To get an idea of the size and distances, we try to
imagine the Sun as a pumpkin of 20 inches in
diameter: in comparison, the Earth would be as big as
the head of a pin placed 20 meters away.
THE SUN
THE PLANETS
MERCURY
Mercury isthe first planet from the sun.It’s a small planet,
rocky and studded with craters. It hasn’t got any satellites
(or moons), or an atmosphere worthy of consideration.
THE PLANETS
VENUS
Venus is the seconf planet from the sun, slightly smaller
than Earth. It is covered by thick clouds of carbon dioxide
carrying droplets of sulfuric acid. This dense cloud layer
traps heat on the planet's surface, making it even hotter
than Mercury. Even Venus has no satellites.
THE PLANETS
Third is the planet Earth, the "blue planet", with its
oceans of water, continents and a brilliant atmospheric
haze embroidered white clouds. The Earth is a rocky
planet, like the other inner planets of the solar system
(those closest to the Sun), but its rocky surface has been
transformed by life.
Earth
THE PLANETS
MOON
The Moon is the satellite of the Earth; it is a rocky body
marked by craters. It is a small body with a gravity which is
about 1/6 of the Earth.
THE PLANETS
Mars, the "red planet", is the last of the inner planets. It has
two small moons: Phobos and Deimos. Its reddish color
derives from the reaction of the rocks in contact with
oxygen.
Mars
THE PLANETS
ASTEROID BELT
After Mars, before meeting Jupiter, there are thousands of
rocky masses, often with a strange shape called asteroid
belt. The gravity of Jupiter has caught some of them. They
orbite Jupiter as satellites
THE PLANETS
Jupiter is the giant of our solar system. The planet does not
have a real surface, because itdoesn’t consist of solid rocks,
but by gas, and is covered with a thick band of clouds, in
which you observe violent lightning storms.
JUPITER
Jupiter is surrounded by weak rings, composed of grains of
powder. Jupiter has many satellites, the largest of which are
Europa, Ganymede, Io and Callisto. you can see even
erupting volcanoes!
THE PLANETS
SATURN
Saturn is the second largest planet in the solar system with
its large rings made of icy rocks. Even Saturn is a gas giant
and, like Jupiter, has many satellites. Saturn is quite far
from the Sun (about 1.4 x 109 km) from which it receives
very little heat.
THE PLANETS
URANUS
The blue color of Uranus is due to the presence of methane.
Uranus is the only planet to spin on its side. This unusual
position is probably due to the impact with another celestial
body. Takes 84 years to revolve around the sun.
THE PLANETS
NEPTUNE
Neptune is the outermost and the farthest planet of the
Solar System. The dark spots on the surface are probably
due to hurricanes. The great dark spot has more or less the
size of Earth. Its year is about 165 Earth years.
THE PLANETS
PLUTO
Earlier it was considered the ninth planet in the solar
system but in 2006 was declassified form being a planet. It’s
a "dwarf planet" because of its size!
THE PLANETS
E-K
Beyond Pluto there is a belt of icy asteroids, EdgeworthKuiper called Range (abbreviated EK). Some of the comets
that appear in our skies come from the range of EK.
http://stars.chromeexperiments.com/