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The Outer Planets
By Arvin, Paul and Jeremy
Introduction
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Today we will be discussing the outer planets.
•These are:
•Uranus
•Neptune
•And the dwarf planet, Pluto.
•We divided all three planets among us.
Let's begin with.....
URANUS!
I STUDIED URANUS.
•Anyways, Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun.
•It was named after the Greek God Uranus.
•Uranus is very unique because when it orbits, it spins like
a bowling ball, rather than spinning like a top.
•With this weird position, each pole faces away from the
sun 21 years at a time.
• It was discovered in 1781, by William Herschel.
• The planet consists of rock, ice, and some gas.
Although, its atmosphere is mostly gas.
• The gases include:
• Methane
• Hydrogen
• and Helium.
More facts about Uranus.
• Much like other gas planets, Uranus has clouds that blow
quickly over the planet. However, they aren't as powerful as
Jupiter's red spot or the ones from Neptune.
• Along with Earth, Uranus is the one of the planets that isn't
named after a Roman God.
• Uranus has 27 moons.
• The planet has 11 Rings. They are called 1986U2R,6,5,4,
Alpha, Beta, Eta, Gamma, Delta, 1986U1R and Epsilon.
• The rings aren't quite visible though, like Saturn's rings.
More Info
• Uranus, also has a core of rock, ice, and various minerals.
It's atmosphere is thick and gassy, so we can't see it.
• Because of its atmosphere's immense pressure colliding
with the core, there are also probably lots of diamonds
on Uranus.
• Diamonds are created when carbon mixes with heat and
pressure.
• Uranus has only been visited by Voyager 2.
Why does it spin on its side?
• Scientists speculate Uranus spins on it side because the
planet collided with something giant, like an asteroid, which
caused it to tip over.
• Others believe Uranus spins on its side because one of its
moons moving away from the planet used it's gravitational
pull to pull it away.
• The latter reason is unlikely, because a moon's pull isn't
strong enough to pull a giant planet like Uranus.(That's what
I think.)
Years, Days, and Size
• A Day in Uranus is equal to 17 Hours on Earth.
• However, A year on Uranus takes FOREVER! A year in
Uranus is 84 Earth Years.
• Uranus's size is 51 118 km.
Okay, I'm done talking about Uranus.
Paul, it's your turn. Talk about Neptune.
Facts
• Neptune is the eighth planet from the sun.
• It is the farthest from the sun, now that Pluto is considered a
dwarf planet rather than an actual planet.
• It also happens to be very cold.
• Neptune was named after the Roman God of the Sea,
Neptune.
• Uranus was discovered by two gentlemen, who are named
John Galle and Heinrich Louis D'arrest.
Even More Information
• There is an area in its southern hemisphere called the dark
spot, which has blown for 200 years.
• It was the first planet discovered through mathematical
prediction rather than observation.
• Neptune has 13 moons.
• Neptune has 4 rings, which are called
1989N1R,1989N2R,1989N3R and lastly, 1989N4R.
• Like Uranus, Neptune has only been visited by Voyager 2.
• Neptune has the fastest winds in all of the solar system. The
winds can reach 2000 km per hour.
Distance from the sun
• Since Neptune's orbit path is elliptical, its distance from the
sun changes from time to time.
• When it is at its closest, Neptune is about 4 and half billion
kilometres away from the Sun.
• At its farthest, Neptune is about 4.6 billion
kilometres away from the sun.
Size, Years, and Days.
• A year in Neptune is equal to 59,800 days on Earth.
• A Day in Neptune is 16 Earth Hours.
• The size of Neptune is 49 528 km.
The Last Planet we have researched
is...
Pluto! And Jeremy will tell you all about it.
Pluto Facts
• Technically, Pluto is a Dwarf Planet. That's why in 2006,
they decided to take it out of the Solar System.
• If it was still a Planet, Pluto would be the farthest from the
sun.
• It was discovered in 1931, by Clyde Tombargh.
• The Planet was named after the Roman God of the
Underworld.
• In its atmosphere, Pluto has Carbon Monoxide, Methane
and Nitrogen.
• Pluto has three moons: Hydra, Nix, and Charon.
More Pluto Information
• Pluto is the Ninth Planet from the Sun.
• It has no rings.
• It was named by an 11-Year Old girl named Venetia
Burney.
• Since it is extremely far from the sun, Pluto is VERY cold.
• In Pluto's crust, you'll find ice, water and methane. Dig
deeper, and you'll find only ice and water.
• Pluto's orbit is so odd, it sometimes crosses
into Neptune's Orbit.
• No Spacecraft has ever visited Pluto. Space telescopes can
only show blocky images.
Just two sentences of info.
• Pluto is believed to be an Object from the Kuiper Belt, which
is out side the Solar System. Pluto was probably close
enough to still be captured by the Sun's gravity.
• Pluto is the second largest dwarf planet in the Solar System,
next to Eris.
Size, Days,and Years
• A day on Pluto is 153 hours on Earth.
• A Year on Pluto is equivalent to 248 Earth Years.
• Pluto's size is only 2 247 km. That is smaller than Earth's
moon!
Uranus Compared to Earth
Neptune Compared to Earth
Pluto Compared to Earth
Sources
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Astronomy: Out this World! By Dan Green.
The Encyclopedia of Science
KidsAstronomy
NinePlanets.org
UniverseToday
Thanks for Listening!