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Earth Science
Chapter 4 Outline
I. The Solar System (4.1)
A. Stars, Planets, and Moons
1. __________- glowing ball of hot gas that makes its own energy and light
2. __________ are large objects in space that orbit the sun
3. Moon is an object that orbits a planet
a. Also known as a __________
4. Planets and moons do not make their own light, they shine because they reflect
the light of the __________, our closest star
a. Stars are the source of light for all objects in space
b. You can see a planet or moon because it reflects light from the sun
5. The stars, planets, and moons in the sky are __________
6. Planets, with their moons, revolve around the sun in what is known as the
__________system
a. __________ System- a star, such as the sun, and all of the objects that
revolve around it in space
B. Objects in the Solar System
1. There are __________ recognized planets in our solar system
a. Each planet travels in a fixed __________ around the sun
2. All of the planets move around the sun in the same direction, however, the
planets don’t orbit together as a group
a. Each planet moves along its path at its own speed
b. In general, the farther-away a planet is from the sun, the bigger its orbit and
the __________ its speed
3. The entire solar system holds together because of __________
a. There is gravity between every object in the solar system, attracting these
objects to each other
b. Because the sun has much more __________ than the objects orbiting it,
the objects are pulled toward the sun
c. This pull of gravity is balanced by the speed and motion of the objects
C. The Sun
1. The largest object in the solar system is the __________
a. It’s mass, the amount of matter it contains, is __________% of the entire
solar system
2. The sun is made mostly of two gases: hydrogen and __________
a. Because the sun is mostly gas, it has no solid surface
3. The sun is not fixed in space
a. It __________ on an axis like a planet
b. Because it is mostly gas, parts of the sun rotate at different rates
c. On average, the sun rotates __________ a month
4. The outer temp of the sun is about __________˚C
5. In the sun’s center, temps of __________˚C cause __________ particles to fuse
and form __________
a. These nuclear reactions produce energy that we see as light and feel as heat
6. __________- envelope of gas surrounding an object in space
a. This is the only part of the sun that can be seen on a normal basis
b. The sun’s atmosphere consists of three layers
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Earth Science
Chapter 4 Outline
1. The inner layer is called the __________, it gives off light
2. Just outside the photosphere is the __________
a. The gas of the chromosphere can sometimes be seen during a total
solar eclipse, when the photosphere is blocked
3. The outer layer of the sun’s atmosphere is the __________
a. It is a thick layer of gas
b. The corona can also been seen during a solar eclipse
7. __________- dark area on the sun’s surface that gives off less energy than the
rest of the sun
a. They are still at about __________˚C
b. Sunspots move in groups across the face of the sun, this shows that the sun
rotates
II. The Inner Planets (4.2)
- all of the inner planets are __________ and similar in size
A. Mercury
1. The closest planet to the sun
2. Named after the __________ god of speed, Mercury is the fastest moving
planet
a. Its average speed as it orbits the sun is about __________ kilometers per
second
3. Mercury completes an entire revolution of the sun in __________ earth days
4. Mercury rotates very slowly, one day on Mercury lasts about __________ earth
days
5. Of all the planets, Mercury’s surface temp changes the most, this is because
Mercury has almost no atmosphere to hold in or keep out the sun’s
heat
a. The side of Mercury facing the sun reaches __________˚C
b. The side away from the sun drops to __________˚C
B. Venus
1. Second closest planet to the sun
2. Named after the Roman goddess of __________ and beauty
3. Venus is the hottest planet at __________˚C
4. It is also the brightest planet in the sky
5. Venus rotates in the opposite direction than most of the other planets
a. Venus rotates __________ to __________ (sun rises in the west)
b. It takes Venus __________ earth days to rotate
6. Venus has an atmosphere
a. Contains great amounts of the gas __________ dioxide
b. Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere traps heat energy from the sun, as a
result, the atmosphere heats up
c. __________ effect- warming of the atmosphere because of the trapped heat
energy from the sun
d. Cloud’s on Venus are made of tiny drops of sulfuric acid
C. Earth
1. Third from the sun
2. About the same size as Venus
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Earth Science
Chapter 4 Outline
3. Earth has several differences from the other inner planets
a. Earth has a mild surface temp that __________ very little
b. It has a dense, protective __________
c. It is the only planet to have __________ water on its surface
d. Because of these features, Earth can sustain life
4. Earth is also the closest planet to the sun that has a __________
D. Mars
1. Fourth planet from the sun
2. Named for the Roman god of war
3. Has two small moons
4. Mars rotates at just over __________ hours
5. Mars revolves at __________ Earth days
6. The atmosphere on Mars is much less dense than on Earth
a. It contains mostly __________ dioxide
7. Mars is colder than Earth because it is farther away from the sun and has a
thinner atmosphere
8. Iron in the rocks and soil makes the surface look __________
III. The Outer Planets (4.3)
A. Some Outer Planet Facts
1. Except for Pluto, the outer planets have rings and are much larger than the
inner planets
2. The other planets are mostly frozen gas and liquid, with a small, solid core
B. Jupiter
1. Jupiter is the __________ planet in the solar system
2. Jupiter was named for the Roman King of the Gods
3. It takes Jupiter only __________ hours to rotate once
4. A large red oval appears on the surface of Jupiter; this area is called the Great
Red Spot
a. This spot is actually a spinning __________
5. Jupiter has at least __________ moons
a. __________ has active volcanoes that erupt constantly
b. The largest of Jupiter’s moons is __________. It is bigger than the planet
Mercury
c. Europa is an icy world with a smooth, cracked surface
C. Saturn
1. Sixth planet from the sun
2. Named for the Roman god of agriculture
3. __________-largest planet in the solar system
4. It takes __________ Earth years for Saturn to revolve around the sun
5. About __________ individual rings orbit Saturn’s equator
a. The rings are made mostly of __________ particles and __________
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Earth Science
Chapter 4 Outline
6. Like Jupiter, Saturn is a giant planet of gases with stormy bands of clouds
running along its surface
7. One day on Saturn is about 11 Earth hours
8. Saturn has at least __________ moons, the largest of which is __________
a. Titan is the only moon in the solar system that is known to have an
atmosphere of its own
b. This atmosphere is mostly nitrogen
c. Titan may also have active volcanoes
D. Uranus
1. Seventh planet from the sun
2. Named for the Greek god of the sky
3. Uranus rotates on its __________
a. During some parts of its revolution, one pole of Uranus points directly at
the sun
4. Uranus has at least __________ rings and __________ moons
5. It takes 84 Earth years for Uranus to complete a single orbit of the sun
6. Uranus rotates on its axis once every 17 hours
E. Neptune
1. Eighth planet from the sun
2. Named after the Roman god of the sea
3. Neptune appears greenish-blue because of __________ gas in its atmosphere
4. Neptune has four rings: two thin and two thick
5. It takes Neptune 164 Earth years to complete a revolution around the sun
6. The planet rotates on its axis every __________ hours
7. One of Neptune’s 11 moons is unusual
a. It rotates in the opposite direction of Neptune’s rotation
b. This moon, named __________, also has active volcanoes
F. Pluto
1. Pluto is the coldest, outermost planet of the solar system, but it is not always
the farthest from the sun
2. It has a tilted, stretched-out orbit that sometimes falls inside the orbit of
__________
3. Pluto is the smallest planet
4. Pluto is the only outer planet without a ring system or a thick atmosphere
5. Pluto has one moon, __________
6. Pluto takes __________ Earth years to make one revolution
7. Pluto seems to rotate about once every 6 days
IV. Other Objects in the Solar System (4.4)
A. __________—a rocky object smaller than a planet that has its own orbit around
the sun
1. Most asteroids are smaller than a kilometer in diameter, but a few are 1,000
kilometers across
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Earth Science
Chapter 4 Outline
2. Asteroid __________- region between Mars and Jupiter where most asteroids
orbit the sun
a. As many as a million asteroids make up this belt orbiting the sun
b. Not all of these asteroids stay in their orbits
c. Sometimes asteroids are pulled out of orbit by the gravity of other planets
or even the sun
3. __________- brief streak of light seen when an asteroid enters the Earth’s
atmosphere and burns up
4. __________- asteroid that hits the surface of a planet or moon after traveling
through space
B. Comet - ball of ice, rock, __________ gases, and dust that orbits the sun
1. Most comets follow large orbits
2. When a comet approaches the sun, the comet begins to warm up
a. Some of the ice turns to gas, and dust is also released
b. The gas and dust reflect sunlight, making the comet visible
c. A stream of particles from the sun, called the solar __________, pushes the
gas and dust away from the head of the comet
d. This gas and dust form a __________ that points away from the sun
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