Download Lesson 3 | The Outer Planets - 6th Grade earth and space Science

Lesson 3 | The Outer Planets
Student Labs and Activities
Page
44
Content Vocabulary
45
Lesson Outline
46
MiniLab
48
Content Practice A
49
Content Practice B
50
Language Arts Support
51
Math Skills
53
School to Home
54
Key Concept Builders
55
Enrichment
59
Challenge
60
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Launch Lab
The Solar System
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Name
Date
Launch Lab
Class
LESSON 3: 15 minutes
How do we see distant objects in the solar system?
Some of the outer planets were discovered hundreds of years ago. Why weren’t all planets
discovered?
Object
Distance from Sun
(cm)
Sun
0
Jupiter
39
Saturn
71
Uranus
143
Neptune
295
Procedure
1. Read and complete a lab safety form.
2. Use a meterstick, masking tape,
textbook in the flashlight beam at
each planet location. Record your
observations in your Science Journal.
3. Shine a flashlight from “the Sun”
horizontally along the tape.
Think About This
1. What happens to the image of the page as you move away from the flashlight?
2.
Key Concept Why do you think it is more difficult to observe the outer planets
than the inner planets?
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The Solar System
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and the data table to mark and label
the position of each object on the tape
on the floor along a straight line.
4. Have a partner hold a page of your
Name
Date
Class
Content Vocabulary
LESSON 3
The Outer Planets
Directions: In this word search puzzle, find and circle the five terms listed below. Then on each line, write the
term that correctly completes each sentence.
Copyright © Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Galilean moons
orbit
probe
rotation
Titan
Y
G
B
G
Z
D
F
D
R
H
I
D
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T
A
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K
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M
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C
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Q
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Y
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1. Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto are called the
2. Saturn’s largest moon,
.
, is bigger than the planet Mercury.
3. Like Jupiter, Saturn has a rapid
and horizontal bands
of clouds.
4. Jupiter takes almost 12 years to complete one
5. Scientists use a
.
to examine planets and moons in the solar
system.
The Solar System
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Name
Date
Class
Lesson Outline
LESSON 3
The Outer Planets
A. The Gas Giants
1. The outer planets are made of materials that are usually
on Earth.
2. Gravitational forces produced by the large sizes of these planets change gases
into
.
B. Jupiter
1.
is the largest planet in the solar system.
a. Although it takes 12 years to revolve around the Sun, Jupiter
faster than any other planet.
b. Jupiter has a system of
around it.
2. Jupiter’s atmosphere contains helium but is mostly made up
of
.
a. Jupiter’s rotation stretches its clouds into colorful
b. The
.
on Jupiter is a storm that has lasted more than
300 years.
, and small amounts of other materials.
4. Jupiter has a solid core that is surrounded by
.
5. The four largest moons of Jupiter are called
Io,
. These are
, Ganymede, and Callisto.
C. Saturn
1. Like Jupiter, Saturn rotates
and has clouds in bands.
2. Saturn is mostly made of
3. Saturn has the largest
a. Saturn has
and helium.
system in the solar system.
bands of rings, each of which contains
thousands of smaller rings.
b. The rings are made mainly of
4. Most of Saturn’s moons are small, but one of them,
particles.
, is
larger than the planet Mercury.
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3. Jupiter’s entire structure is made up of about 80 percent hydrogen, about 20 percent
Name
Date
Class
Lesson Outline continued
D. Uranus
1. Uranus’s atmosphere contains mostly hydrogen and helium, with small amounts
of
.
a. Beneath Uranus’s atmosphere is a slushy layer of water,
, and other materials.
b. Uranus might have a rocky
.
2. The rotational axis of Uranus is
more than that of other
planets.
3. Uranus has at least
moons and a small ring system.
E. Neptune
1. The atmosphere and interior of Neptune are similar
to
moons and a faint ring system.
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2. Neptune has at least
.
The Solar System
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Name
Date
MiniLab
Class
LESSON 3: 15 minutes
How do Saturn’s moons affect its rings?
In this lab, sugar models Saturn’s rings. How might Saturn’s moons affect its rings?
Procedure
1. Read and complete a lab safety form.
2. Hold two sharpened pencils with
their points even and then tape them
together.
3. Insert a third pencil into the hole in a
record. Hold the pencil so the record
is in a horizontal position.
4. Have your partner sprinkle sugar
evenly over the surface of the record.
Hold the taped pencils vertically over
the record so that the tips rest in the
record’s grooves.
5. Slowly turn the record. Record what
happens to the sugar below.
Data and Observations
1. Compare and Contrast What feature of Saturn’s rings do the pencils model?
2. Infer What do you think causes the spaces between the rings of Saturn?
3.
Key Concept What would have to be true for a moon to interact in this way
with Saturn’s rings?
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The Solar System
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Analyze and Conclude
Name
Date
Class
Content Practice A
LESSON 3
The Outer Planets
Directions: Use your textbook, including Figure 12, to describe each planet in the space provided.
Jupiter
Copyright © Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
1.
Saturn
2.
Uranus
3.
The Solar System
Neptune
4.
49
Name
Date
Content Practice B
Class
LESSON 3
The Outer Planets
Directions: Answer each question on the lines provided.
1. What do the outer planets have in common?
2. Which outer planets have the shortest period of revolution and which have the longest?
3. How does the rotation of Uranus differ from the rotation of the other outer planets?
Copyright © Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
4. What is particularly significant about Saturn’s rings?
5. What is important to remember about the Great Red Spot on Jupiter?
6. What causes the layers of colorful bands of clouds on Jupiter?
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Name
Date
Class
Language Arts Support
LESSON 3
Writing a Compare-and-Contrast Essay
Preparation and Taking Notes
A compare-and-contrast essay is a form of expository writing that presents the similarities and
differences between two places, things, ideas, or phenomena. This kind of essay includes:
• a general statement about two or more things that are alike in certain ways and
different in other ways;
• specific details that develop each point of similarity or difference;
• a discussion of why the similarities and differences are important or significant;
• a clear organizational structure that helps the reader follow the essay and stay
interested in it.
Before you draft your essay, gather facts, descriptions, and examples that you can use to
highlight similarities and differences. Organize your information and details in a graphic
organizer, such as a Venn diagram. In addition to helping you take notes, a graphic
organizer can help you draw conclusions about similarities and differences.
Directions: Use the Venn diagram to respond to each statement.
Copyright © Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Earth
• average
temperature 15°C
• period of rotation:
24 hours
Both
• diameter:
approximately
12,000 km
• internal structure
includes core,
mantle, and crust
Venus
• average
temperature 460°C
• period of rotation:
244 days
1. Write a statement explaining the similarities between the two planets.
2. Write a statement explaining the differences between the two planets.
The Solar System
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Name
Date
Language Arts Support
Class
LESSON 3
Learning the Skill
Choose an organizational structure listed below to write your compare-and-contrast essay.
Use the information you gathered in your Venn diagram to guide you.
Block Method
First, present all the details about one subject. Then present all the details about the next
subject. Choose this method when you want to cover many types of details. Also use this
method when you want to compare and contrast two or more topics. For example, your
first paragraph should mention main points about the first topic, your second paragraph
should mention main points about a different topic, and so on.
Paragraph 1
Inner planets: small, rocky planets
Paragraph 2
Outer planets: large, gaseous planets
Point-by-Point Method
In your first paragraph, discuss one feature about both subjects. Then in the next paragraph,
present the information about another feature of both subjects.
Composition of each inner and outer planet
Paragraph 2
Number of moons in each inner and outer planet
Paragraph 3
Average density of each inner and outer planet
After choosing one of these organizational methods, you can write your compare-andcontrast essay. Remember that your essay needs an introduction that states a main idea
about your subject. For example: The planets in the solar system can be divided into two
categories based on their composition, number of moons, and average density.
Applying the Skill
Directions: Read Lessons 2 and 3 in your textbook. On a separate sheet of paper, organize details about two
planets other than Earth and Venus using the block method or point-by-point method. Then write a brief compareand-contrast essay on the topic.
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Paragraph 1
Name
Date
Class
Math Skills
LESSON 3
Ratios
A ratio is a comparison of two numbers and can be written as a fraction. For example, Max’s
house is 0.4 miles away from school and Mia’s house is 0.8 miles away.
0.8
The ratio of the distances is ___
.
0.4
Simplify by dividing 0.8 by 0.4 to get 2.
0.8
2
___
= __
0.4
1
Mia’s house is 2 times farther from school than Max’s house.
Distances in the solar system can be compared using astronomical units (AU). One AU is
about 150 million kilometers. Jupiter is 5.20 AU from the Sun, and Saturn is 9.58 AU from
the Sun. How many times farther from the Sun is Saturn than Jupiter?
Step 1 Write the distances as a ratio, with the greater number as the numerator.
9.58
____
5.20
Step 2 Divide to simplify.
9.58
____
= 1.84
5.20
Saturn is 1.84 times farther from the Sun than Jupiter is.
Copyright © Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Practice
1. How many times farther from the Sun
is Neptune (distance = 30.05 AU) than
Saturn (distance = 9.58 AU)?
2. How many times farther from the Sun
is Neptune (distance = 30.05 AU) than
Uranus (distance = 19.20 AU)?
The Solar System
3. How many times farther from the Sun
is Uranus (distance = 19.20 AU) than
Jupiter (distance = 5.20 AU)?
4. How many times farther from Earth is
Jupiter (distance = 629,000,000 km)
than Mercury (distance =
92,000,000 km)?
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Name
Date
School to Home
Class
LESSON 3
The Outer Planets
Directions: Use your textbook to answer each question.
1. The gravitational force of each of the outer planets puts a great deal of
pressure on the planet’s atmosphere.
What is the result of this pressure on the structure of outer planets?
2. Jupiter’s mass is more than double the mass of all the other planets combined.
How does the size of Jupiter compare to the size of Earth?
system. Each of the seven rings is made of narrower ringlets.
How do scientists believe the rings were formed?
4. Uranus and Neptune are the seventh and eighth planets in our solar system.
Both have narrow rings and many moons.
How are the surfaces and structures of the two planets similar?
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3. The rings around Saturn are the largest and most complex in the solar
Name
Date
Key Concept Builder
Class
LESSON 3
The Outer Planets
Key Concept How are the outer planets similar?
Directions: Complete the compare-and-contrast chart by writing terms from the list in the correct spaces.
diameter of planet
mass
distance from the Sun
number of moons
gases change to liquid
size of rings
strong gravitational force
small solid core
hydrogen and helium gases
temperature
lack a solid surface
tilt of rotation
period of revolution
period of rotation
mainly liquid interiors
type of rings
How are the outer planets similar?
1.
2.
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3.
4.
5.
6.
How are the outer planets different?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
The Solar System
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Name
Date
Class
Key Concept Builder
LESSON 3
The Outer Planets
Key Concept How are the outer planets similar?
Directions: Complete each chart by writing the correct information after each bullet.
Jupiter
Moons
Rings
• Names of the four largest Galilean moons:
• Description of ring system:
• Galilean moons larger than Earth’s moon:
• Origin of ring system:
• Composition of moons:
Saturn
Moons
• Five largest moons:
•
•
•
•
•
Size of rings:
Number of bands:
Width of main ring system:
Thickness of main ring system:
Origin of rings:
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• Composition of moons:
• Moon with dense atmosphere:
• Moon that is larger than planet Mercury:
Rings
Uranus
Moons
• Two largest moons:
• Surface of Titania:
Rings
• Description of ring system:
Neptune
Moons
• Largest moon:
• Composition of Triton:
Rings
• Description of ring system:
• Surface of Triton:
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Name
Date
Class
Key Concept Builder
LESSON 3
The Outer Planets
Key Concept What are the outer planets made of?
Directions: Answer each question in the space provided.
Planet
Jupiter
Size
1. What is
Jupiter’s
mass?
Atmosphere
2. What gases make up
Jupiter’s atmosphere?
Structure
4. What happens at about
1,000 km below the cloud
layer?
3. What is the Great Red Spot?
5. What do scientists suspect
the core might be made of?
Saturn
6. What is
Saturn’s
mass?
7. What gases make up Saturn’s
atmosphere?
9. In what ways is Saturn like
Jupiter?
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8. How thick is the
atmosphere?
Uranus
10. What is the 11. What gases make up the
mass of
atmosphere of Uranus?
Uranus?
12. What lies below the
atmosphere of Uranus?
13. What do scientists think
about the core?
Neptune
14. What is the 15. What gases make up
mass of
Neptune’s atmosphere?
Neptune?
16. What are the dark circular
areas?
The Solar System
17. What is the composition of
the interior?
18. What is the composition of
the core?
57
Name
Date
Class
Key Concept Builder
LESSON 3
The Outer Planets
Key Concept What are the outer planets made of?
Directions: Answer each question by writing the correct outer planet or planets on the lines provided.
Jupiter
Neptune
Saturn
Uranus
1. Which planets have a small amount of methane in their atmospheres?
2. Which planets have atmospheres composed of hydrogen and helium gases?
3. Which planet has an atmosphere of 90 percent hydrogen?
4. Which planets have rings?
5. Which planet has a tilted axis of rotation?
6. Which planet’s interior is most like the one on Uranus?
8. Which planets have interiors made of partially frozen water and ammonia?
9. Which planet’s surface is a thick, slushy layer of water, ammonia, and other materials?
10. Which planet takes 165 years to orbit the Sun?
11. Which planet has a core that might be the size of Earth and ten times its mass?
12. Which planet has rings, each containing thousands of narrower ringlets?
13. Which outer planets have periods of rotation that are shorter than Earth’s?
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7. Which planet has the largest and most complex ring system?
Name
Date
Class
Enrichment
LESSON 3
The Outer Planets
The Jovian Planets
According to the nebular hypothesis,
the solar system formed from a rotating
cloud of gas and dust—a solar nebula—that
surrounded the newly formed Sun. Solid
bits of matter began to collide and clump
together. The rotating nebular disk flattened,
and the clumps began to form planets.
Copyright © Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Planet Formation
In the inner regions of the forming solar
system near the Sun, the temperatures were
so high that only the metals and silicate
materials could clump together. It was too
hot for gases such as carbon dioxide and
methane to accumulate and too hot for ice
to form. Thus the inner planets formed
from materials that had high melting
points.
Much more material in the clumping
solar nebula would also become planets.
Out in the cold, distant reaches of the solar
nebula, ices of water and other substances
could form. These materials began to
accrete, or clump together, to form the
outer planets. Eventually, these planets
became so massive that their gravity could
hold light gases, such as helium and
hydrogen.
Jovian Characteristics
The massive outer planets are now
called the Jovian (Jupiterlike) planets. A
Jovian planet has a core of solid iron and
rock, but the rest of the entire planet is
made of ices and gases. If you could travel
to these planets, there would be no solid
ground to stand on.
It has been hypothesized that Jupiter is
made mostly of the same materials as the
Sun, and that if it had been 100 times
larger and more massive, it would have
become another sun. Jupiter is the largest
of all the planets.
Applying Critical-Thinking Skills
Directions: Respond to each statement.
1. Describe how the outer planets differ in composition from the inner planets.
2. Interpret the following statement: Humans will never set foot on any of the outer
planets. Justify your answer.
3. Infer how Jupiter could have become another sun if it had been larger.
The Solar System
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Name
Date
Class
Challenge
LESSON 3
The Outer Planets
Moons of the Outer Planets
Jupiter has at least 63 moons, some of which don’t have names yet. The moons of the
outer planets range in diameter from 2 km to 5,268 km. The largest moon in the solar
system is Jupiter’s Ganymede, which is larger than the planet Mercury.
Many moons of the outer planets are small and have irregular shapes and unusual orbits.
Some scientists believe that these are captured asteroids, meaning the gravity of the planet
pulled the object into its orbit. Captured asteroids are natural satellites, but they did not
form by accretion as regular spherical moons probably did.
Moons of the Outer Planets
Planet
Number of
Moons
Jupiter
at least 63
Io, Europa, Ganymede,
Callisto
Ganymede is the solar system’s largest
moon, with a diameter of 5,268 km.
These four moons are planet-sized.
Saturn
at least 60
Titan, Rhea, Iapetus,
Dione
Titan is planet-sized at 5,150 km in
diameter.
Uranus
at least 27
Titania, Oberon, Umbriel,
Ariel
Titania is 1,578 km in diameter, while
tiny Cordelia is 26 km in diameter.
Neptune
at least 13
Triton, Proteus, Nereid,
Naiad
Neptune’s moon Triton is 2,700 km
in diameter.
Largest Moons
Moon Sizes
of size from largest to smallest. Create a scale so you can keep your drawings
proportional. Be sure to show your scale.
2. Develop an argument in a brief statement as to how you would reclassify a captured
asteroid from a moon to another category of natural satellite.
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The Solar System
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1. Select the largest moon each planet has. In the space below, draw the moons in order