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Download Section 14.3 The Inner Planets
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The Inner Planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars The Inner Planets The four inner planets are small and have rocky surfaces They are also known as the terrestrial planets The four inner planets are Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars Mercury Planet closest to the sun Exploring Mercury Hard to see because it is so close to the sun Looks like the moon, with many craters and flat plains Mercury’s Atmosphere Extremely thin Heat from the sun has dissipated the atmosphere Also has weak gravitational force Gas is mostly sodium Planet of Extremes Greatest temperature range of all the planets -183° C (-298° F) during the night 427° C (800° F) during the day “The Morning Star” 7.5 earth months to revolve around the sun Day is longer than it’s year (8 months) Retrograde rotation (rotating backwards) – Hypothesis that Venus was struck by a very large object that changed it’s rotation Venus’s Atmosphere Not a star, it reflects the light from the sun Venus’s Movement Venus Pressure is 90 times greater than Earth’s atmosphere Mostly carbon dioxide Sulfuric acid clouds 467° C (872° F) at surface (melts lead) – caused by greenhouse effect (trapping of heat by atmosphere) Exploring Venus Covered with rock, volcanoes with lava flows, craters (like Earth) Features discovered by using space probes Rotation Direct and Retrograde Rotations Direct rotation (on the left) and retrograde rotation (on the right). In direct rotation, the rotation of the planet is in the same direction as its orbital motion. In retrograde rotation, the rotation of the planet is in the opposite direction to its orbital motion. The Morning and Evening “Star” Earth Atmosphere Extends more than 100 km above the surface 20% oxygen / 78% nitrogen / 2% other Surface 70% covered with water Three layers below Earth’s rocky crust – mantel, outer core, inner core Layers of the earth Mars “The Red Planet” Reddish tinge when you see it in the sky Atmosphere Mostly carbon dioxide 1% of the pressure of Earth’s atmosphere Canals on Mars? Giovanni Schiaparelli (1877) discovered channels on Mars surface Percival Lowell (1890) convinced many people that channels were built by Martians to carry water Not correct, it’s an illusion, no life known on Mars Mars Seasons on Mars Tilted axis, therefore seasons As seasons change, dust blows and creates dark regions on the planet, they are not plants Exploring Mars Covered with craters, like the moon Rusty dust surface (gives it it’s red surface) No oceans or even puddles of water, but water did flow millions of years ago There is ice on the poles (water and carbon dioxide) The face Olympus Mons The Moons of Mars Phobos (Fear) Largest moon (27km in diameter) Deimos (Panic) 15km in diameter Your extra credit assignment: To research the numbers given in this song to see if they are scientifically plausible or were they fabricated for the sake of a humorous song?