Space

Lapbook
General Information

Space Vocabulary
Asteroid – a rocky space object that can be a few feet wide to several
hundred miles wide. Most asteroids in our solar system orbit in a belt
between Mars and Jupiter.

Astronaut – a person who travels in space

Astronomer – a scientist who observes and studies planets, stars, and

Galaxies

Atmosphere – all the gases which surround a star, like our Sun, or a planet,
like our Earth

Cosmonaut – an astronaut from the former Soviet Union or present day

Russia

Galaxy – a giant collection of gas, dust, and millions or billions of stars

Gravity – the invisible force between objects that makes objects attract
each other

Meteorite – a piece of stone or metal from space that falls to Earth’s

Surface

Milky Way – the name of our galaxy

Revolve – to move in an orbit or circle around something

Rotate – to turn around a center point, or axis, like a wheel turns on a

Bicycle

Solar System - the Sun and all of the objects that travel around it. These
objects include planets, natural satellites such as the Moon, the asteroid
belt, comets and meteoroids.
Telescope – a device that creates a larger image of a faraway object

Universe - a huge wide-open space that holds everything from the smallest
particle to the biggest galaxy. No one but God knows just how big the
Universe is.

o Complete Space Dictionary (two options are available)

Black Holes
When a large star runs out of fuel, it begins to collapse under its own
weight. It gets smaller and smaller until it is squashed up into a very tiny
space - less than a tiny atom. As it gets more compact, its gravity becomes
stronger and stronger. Its gravity becomes so strong that anything that gets
too close to it gets pulled in. Even light cannot escape a black hole's
gravity.

(You can take a dry sponge the size of a soda can, and squish it up in your
hands until it is completely covered by your fist and you can no longer see
it. This will demonstrate the idea of the star compacting and collapsing in
on itself.)

o Complete Black Hole Matchbook

Comets and Meteors

Comets are lumps of ice and dust that come every so often into the center
of the solar system from somewhere in its outer reaches. Some comets
make several different trips into the solar system. When comets get close
enough to the Sun, heat causes them to begin evaporating. Jets of gas and
dust form long tails that we can see from Earth. These tails can sometimes
be millions of miles long. The dust particles are as tiny as a grain of sand
and are called meteors.

Meteors are debris and particles left over from passing comets. When they
enter the earth’s atmosphere, they get hot very quickly. As the meteors
burn up, they leave bright streaks of light across the night sky. These are
often called 'shooting stars' or 'falling stars'.
 o Complete Comets and Meteors Simple Fold

Satellites
A satellite is a smaller object that orbits a larger object. There are natural
satellites such as the earth's moon. There are many different kinds of manmade
satellites. Some (like the Hubble Space Telescope) are used to take
pictures of planets and other objects in space. Some other functions of
satellites include: spying, gathering weather data for prediction, mapping
and GPS, and transmitting signals for cell phones, radio, and television.

o Complete Satellite Matchbook

Astronauts and Astronomers Information

Yuri Gagarin
Colonel Yuri A. Gagarin was born on a farm west of Moscow, Russia on March 9,
1934.Yuri Gagarin joined the Russian Air Force in 1955 and graduated with
honors from the Soviet Air Force Academy in 1957. He became a military fighter
pilot, and by 1959 he had been chosen for cosmonaut training as part of the first
group of USSR cosmonauts.

Yuri Gagarin flew only one space mission. On April 12, 1961 he became the first
human to orbit Earth. Gagarin's spacecraft was Vostok 1. The flight lasted 108
minutes. Once in orbit, Yuri Gagarin had no control over his spacecraft. Vostok's
reentry was controlled by a computer program. As was planned, Cosmonaut
Gagarin ejected after reentry into Earth's atmosphere and landed by parachute.

Colonel Yuri Gagarin died on March 27, 1968 in a plane crash. Cosmonaut Yuri
Gagarin is often called "The Columbus of the Cosmos!"

Alan Shepard
Alan Shepard was born in 1923 in New Hampshire. He attended the United
States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland where he graduated in 1944.
Shepard served on a destroyer during World War II and was a Navy test pilot
when he was chosen to join the Astronaut Corps.
He became the first American to enter space on May 5,1961. Shepard spent only
five minutes in actual space aboard Freedom 7. His flight paved the way for the
United States to become a leader in space exploration. In 1971 he became the
fifth man to walk on the Moon during the Apollo 14 mission. Shepard carried a
golf club onboard the ship and was able to play golf on the Moon. After his
Moon adventure, he became an admiral in the United States Navy, and was the
first astronaut to ever achieve this rank. Admiral Shepard died on July 22, 1998.

John Glenn
Senator John Hershel Glenn, Jr. was born in Cambridge, Ohio on July 18, 1921.
He flew combat missions during World War II and the Korean Conflict. After
service in Korea, John Glenn attended the Naval Test Pilot School. While serving
as a project officer, he set a transcontinental speed record by flying from Los
Angeles to New York in 3 hours and 23 minutes. It was the first transcontinental
flight to average supersonic speeds. John Glenn was chosen as one of seven
Project Mercury astronauts in 1959.
In February of 1962, he became the first American to orbit Earth. John Glenn
retired from the Marine Corps in 1965.

He became a U.S. Senator in 1974. In 1998 he was given the chance to

return to space, and was a member of the crew of Space Shuttle Discovery.
Senator Glenn would be a subject for research on how weightlessness affects
the body of an older person.

Neil Armstrong
Neil Alden Armstrong was born on August 5,1930 in Wapakoneta, Ohio. From
1949 to 1952, Armstrong was a naval aviator, and after leaving the military, he
became a test pilot.

While serving as a test pilot, he was chosen to be a member of the astronaut

corps. In July of 1969, Neil Armstrong was the commander of Apollo 11,
America's first mission to try to land a manned vehicle on the Moon. On July 20,
1969 Commander Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin touched down on the Moon.

As Armstrong became the first person to step onto the Moon's surface, he
spoke the unforgettable phrase, "That's one small step for man; one giant
leap for mankind.” He and Aldrin explored the Moon's surface for 2.5 hours.
Armstrong was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his
accomplishments and contributions to the space program.

Tycho Brache
Tycho Brache was a16th century Danish astronomer who created
precise measurements of the solar system and more than 700 stars. One
of his greatest discoveries occurred in 1572, when he found a supernova
near the constellation Cassiopeia.

He worked to combine the Copernican system with the Ptolemaic system into
his own model of the universe, the Tychonic System. He is credited with the
most accurate astronomy observations of his time.

Brache was assisted by Johannes Kepler, who later used Tycho’s information to
develop his own theories of astronomy and to derive the laws of planetary
motion.

Johannes Kepler
Kepler was born in Germany in 1571 and he was a key figure in the 17th century
astronomical revolution. Kepler was best known for his laws of planetary
motion, now known as Kepler’s Laws. His laws also provided one of the
foundations for Newton’s theory of universal gravitation. He invented an
improved version of the refracting telescope. He died in 1630.

Claudius Ptolemy
AD 100? – 170? Unsure of where he was born, but
most of his life was spent in Egypt. Even though most of his theories have
been proven wrong or incorrect, Ptolemy was probably one of the most
famous astronomers. His theories, originally developed in the first century
AD, dominated science until the 16th century. His early work shows his
belief that the earth was the center of the universe, but later work shows
that he began to believe that the earth and planets moved in circles around
larger objects. His work, however incorrect, laid the foundation for later
astronomers.

Nicholas Copernicus
Polish 1473- 1543 in the 16th century Copernicus
became the first astronomer to publish his scientific theory of heliocentrism
(Greek: Helios-Sun, so the theory that the sun is the center of the solar
system), which stated that the sun rest near the center of the universe and
the earth revolved annually around it.

Galileo Galilei
Italian 1564- 1642 In 1609, he created the first
telescope. Later that year, he built a stronger telescope that he used to
discover craters on the moon, stars in the Milky Way and the four largest
satellites of Jupiter (named the Galilean moons now). Made some of the
first known Western observations of sunspots. He is called the “father of
modern observational astronomy”, “the father of modern physics” “the
father of science.” And the “Father of Modern Science.”

Edmund Halley
British 1656- 1742 First to calculate a comet’s orbit. In
1705, he published the Synopsis on Cometary Astronomy, where he
mathematically demonstrated that comets move in elliptical orbits around
the sun and how over time they would pass the same point. His prediction
was so accurate that when the comet returned in 1758, it confirmed his
theory and the comet was named after him – Halley’s Comet.

Maria Mitchell
United States 1818 – 1889 Born in the 19th century, one
of the first famous female astronomers. Her love for astronomy began
when her father began maintaining a small observatory. In 1847, she
received international recognition for her discovery of a telescopic
comet. The following year she was the first woman elected at the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Check out our Maria's Comet Unit Study and Lapbook at Homeschool Share.

Materials and information may be used for your own personal and school use.
Material may not be used for resale or shared electronically. © HSS 2006-2020
Space Dictionary for Space Vocabulary

Revolve – to move in an orbit or circle

around something Space
Rotate – to turn around a center point,
or axis, like a wheel turns on a bicycle Dictionary
Solar System - the Sun and all of the
objects that travel around it. These
objects include planets, natural satellites
such as the Moon, the asteroid belt,
comets and meteoroids.

Telescope – a device that creates a

larger image of a faraway object

R-T
Universe - a huge wide-open space that
holds everything from the smallest
particle to the biggest galaxy. No one
knows just how big the Universe is.

Directions: Cut on solid black lines.

Stack book together. Your student will
have six tabs to flip through (two at the

U-Z
top, two on the side, and two on the
bottom).

© Homeschool Share
 A-B
Asteroid – a rocky space object that can Meteorite – a piece of stone or metal
be a few feet wide to several hundred from space that falls to Earth’s surface

I-M
miles wide. Most asteroids in our solar
system orbit in a belt between Mars and Milky Way – the name of our galaxy
Jupiter.

Astronaut – a person who travels in space

Astronomer – a scientist who observes

and studies planets, stars, and galaxies

Atmosphere – all the gases which sur-

round a star, like our Sun, or a planet, like
our Earth

C-H NASA – the National Aeronautics and Space

Administration which is in charge of all
space programs for the United States.
Cosmonaut – an astronaut from the
former Soviet Union or present day Russia Orbit - the path an object takes as it
moves around another object.
Galaxy – a giant collection of gas, dust, and
millions or billions of stars

Gravity – the invisible force between

objects that makes objects attract each

N-Q
other

© Homeschool Share
Space Dictionary for Space Vocabulary (BLANK)

Space
Dictionary

R-T

Directions: Cut on solid black lines.

Stack book together. Your student will
have six tabs to flip through (two at the

U-Z
top, two on the side, and two on the
bottom).

© Homeschool Share
 A-B

I-M
C-H

N-Q

© Homeschool Share
 Directions: Cut out shapes on solid black
lines. Fold on dotted lines like an accordion
(back and forth).

Glue back of last piece to your lapbook.

Use glitter and glue to design the four

Barred Spiral different types of galaxies (as indicated in
the picture).

Photo by Jimmie

Elliptical

Irregular

Spiral

Types of
Galaxies
Satellites and Black Holes
Directions: These are two separate books. Cut books out. Fold on lines

Satellite Black Hole

© Homeschool Share
Comets & Meteors
Directions: Cut book out. Fold in half. Record information inside.

Comets &
Meteors

© Homeschool Share
Astronauts & Astronomers
Directions: Cut on solid lines. Fold in half on the dotted line. Fold bottom tab and glue down. Fold
side tab and glue down.

Who are your favorite famous astronomers and astronauts? Add information to the cards on the
next page. Cut on solid lines. Fold on dotted lines. Store in the pocket.

Famous
Glue this side to
your lapbook.

Astronauts &

side tab
Astronomers
bottom tab

© Homeschool Share
Astronauts & Astronomers

Facts: Name:

Facts: Name:

Facts: Name:

© Homeschool Share
 Astronauts: Living in Space *This book requires independent research.
Information not included in the lessons.

Living in
SPACE
Directions: Cut out the four rectangles. Stack together (smallest to largest) with cover on top and staple.

Astronaut Diet

Astronaut Activities Astronaut Clothes

© Homeschool Share
Animals in Space

Directions: Cut on solid lines. Fold (in thirds) on dotted lines. Use the three different
sections inside the book to write about three different animals who have gone to
space.

Animals
in
Space

© Homeschool Share *This book requires independent research.

Information not included in the lessons.
The Sun Information
Basic Sun Facts
The sun is a medium-size yellow Dwarf Star
The sun was created by God on the 4th day
The sun is 1.496x1011 m away from Earth
The surface temperature of the sun is 5,780 Kelvin or over 15,000,000 degrees
Celsius!
The sun is huge! It is 1,392,000 kilometers.

 Complete Sun Facts Simple Fold

Layers of the Sun

The sun has six layers:
1. The Core
2. The Radiation Zone
3. The Convection Zone
4. The Photosphere – the surface
5. Chromosphere – gas layer above photosphere
6. Corona – one of the two gas layers above the photosphere

 Complete Layers of the Sun Book

Why We Need the Sun

We need the sun for many reasons.
1. Energy: The Sun is the primary source of Earth’s energy
2. Photosynthesis – Plants capture the energy from sunlight to convert it into
oxygen and sugar for food.
3. Solar energy -- Solar Power equipment, such as greenhouses and solar water
heaters, use the sun’s energy to generate electricity.
4. Fuel – The energy in fossil fuels and petroleum, which is used for gasoline
and diesel, were originally converted from sunlight due to photosynthesis in
the past.
5. Vitamin D— Needed for proper human health; it is produced by ultraviolet
light

 Complete Significance of the Sun Tab Book

 Basic Sun Facts

Sun
Facts
Directions: Cut out book as one piece. Write important sun facts inside the
book.

© Homeschool Share
The Sun’s Layers

The Sun’s
Layers

Directions: Cut out circles. Write one sun layer on each page. Have your
student write information for or illustrate each layer. Stack together with cover
on top. Staple.

© Homeschool Share
 The Sun’s Layers (continued)

© Homeschool Share
Why We Need the Sun

Significance
of
the Sun
Photosynthesis REMOVE THIS AREA (Cut away so you have just a tab left)

REMOVE THIS AREA

Energy

Directions: Cut the strips along the solid outer lines. If there is a rectangle piece in the right corner of the
strip, cut it off as indicated (remove this area). Stack your strips in order with cover on top and staple where
indicated.
© Homeschool Share
Why We Need the Sun (continued)

Fuel

REMOVE THIS AREA

Vitamin D

REMOVE
Solar Power

© Homeschool Share
The Moon Information
Moon Characteristics
Daily Temperature: 107 degrees Celsius
Night Temperature: -153 degrees Celsius
Complete Orbit around the Earth: Every 27.3 days.
The moon has three layers: the crust, the mantel, and the core.

o Complete Moon Facts Shutterflap Book

The Moon’s Surface

Plains – Visibly dark areas on the Moon’s surface, composed of fine-grained
volcanic rock.

Mountains – Also called the Highlands, these are the visible light areas on
the Moon’s surface

Regolith – Fine grained soil covering the lunar surface. Astronauts say it
feels like snow and smells like gunpowder.

Craters – Several craters are visible from Earth on the lunar surface; these formed
when asteroids and comets crashed into the Moon.

o Complete The Moon’s Surface Flap Book

How Big is the Moon?

The moon is only a quarter the size of the Earth’s Land area. This is
approximately the size of Russia, Canada and the United States combined.

o Complete How Big Is the Moon Simple Fold

The Far Side of the Moon

While orbiting the Earth, the moon always keeps the same hemisphere
facing the Earth. The side that faces the Earth is called “the near side” and the
opposite side is called “the far side.” While the far side of the moon is often
called the “dark side,” this is incorrect. The far side is illuminated by the sun as
often as the near side.
 o No Lapbook Component

Extra Learning Opportunities

o Learn about the moon’s phases. If you can, observe them from new moon
to full moon. Complete the Moon Phases Shutterfold Book

o How much would you weigh on the moon? While a person would have
the same mass (the amount of matter present in their body) on the Moon
and Earth, his weight on the Moon would be about 16% of his weight as
measured on Earth.

Multiply your Earth Weight by .16 to determine your lunar weight.

Materials and information may be used for your own personal and school use.
Material may not be used for resale or shared electronically. © HSS 2006-2020
 How Big Is the Moon Simple Fold
Directions: Cut book out as one piece. Fold in half.
Write about the size of the moon inside. Cut and paste
pictures of Canada, Russia, and USA and glue to the
CANADA
inside of the book.

RUSSIA USA

How Big Is
the Moon?

© Homeschool Share
 Moon Characteristics Shutterflap Book

Moon Facts

Night Day
Temperature Temperature

Time to Orbit Layers

the Earth of the Moon

Directions: Cut on solid lines. Fold on dotted.

© Homeschool Share
 The Moon’s Surface Flap Book

Directions: Cut book out as one piece. Fold top under. Fold bottom under. Open book. Cut on
solid black lines to form four flaps. Refold so that the cover is on the front. Write the correct
terms under the flaps.

Dents that
Dark areas Visible light Fine grained soil
formed when
composed of areas also that feels like
asteroids and
fine grained known as the snow and smells
comets crash
volcanic rock Highlands like gunpowder
into the surface

The Moon’s
Surface
© Homeschool Share
Moon Phases
Directions: Cut out book on as one piece. You are looking at the inside of the book. Fold top
down. Fold bottom up. Cut out title piece (on the next page) and paste to the front of one
of the flaps on your book. If you are using the black and white version, let your students
color the moons

Crescent
Gibbous
Waxing

Waning
Quarter

Quarter
First

Last
Crescent

Gibbous
Waning
Waxing

Moon
Moon

Moon
New

Full
Weighing in on the Moon
Moon Phases (title piece)

Weight
Moon

My Earth
Phases

on the
Weighing in
Weight

Moon
My Lunar

Directions: Cut book out as one piece. Fold top under. Fold bottom under. Open book.
Cut on solid black lines to form two flaps. Refold so that the cover is on the front.
Stars Information
Star Facts
A star is a big ball of gas that gives off heat and light.
Stars are not shaped like stars. They are shaped like balls.
There are 200 billion stars in the Milky Way.
On a clear night, out in the country away from light and pollution, you can see
thousands of stars without a telescope.
The hotter the star, the brighter it shines.
Stars vary in color based upon how hot they are. The main colors are red, yellow,
white and blue. Blue stars burn the hottest (36,000 plus degrees Fahrenheit) and
red stars burn the coolest (5,500 degrees Fahrenheit).
Our sun is a yellow star (11,000 degrees Fahrenheit).
A supernova is a type of stellar explosion that happens when a really big star (at
least eight times as big as our sun) runs out of fuel. It is one of the most
energetic explosions in nature. A supernova can glow for days or even months.
Supernovas are rare in our own galaxy, occurring about once a century in the
Milky Way.
o Complete Star Facts Simple Folds
Five Sizes of Stars
Supergiants are the largest stars, and may have diameters several hundred times
the size of the Sun.
Giants are more common than Supergiants, and have diameters 10 to 100 times
as large as the Sun.
Red Giants have cooler temperatures than giants, and are thus less bright, but
their size is still massive.
Medium-size or dwarf stars are about as large as the sun.
White dwarfs are small stars (smaller than the distance across Asia).
 o Complete Star Sizes Layer Book
Life Cycle of a Star
Stars begin as clouds of dust and gas. These clouds are called
nebulae. The gasses pull together, and the cloud begins to spin. The cloud gets
hotter and hotter until something called “nuclear fusion” happens. A young star
is born.
The star will continue to burn energy and glow. Main Sequence is the state of
the star for the majority of its life. The star remains in main sequence until it runs
out of a gas called hydrogen.
When the hydrogen runs out, the outer shell of the star will begin to expand,
cool, and glow red. At this point it has reached the red giant phase. The mass of
the star
determines the rest of its lifespan.
The star will begin to collapse. The average star will become a white dwarf star.
When a larger star collapses, it will create an explosion called a supernova.
After the supernova it may become a black hole or a neutron star.
o Complete A Star Is Born (The Life Cycle of a Star) Accordion
Shining Stars
The following are some "famous" stars:
1. Antares
Means Rival of Mars. Brightest star in the Constellation Scorpius. This red
Supergiant star has a diameter of around 700 times that of our Sun and is
approximately 520 light years from Earth. This star is the 16th brightest in the
sky.
2. Arcturus
Brightest star in the Bootes (The Herdsman) Constellation. This red giant is
the fourth brightest star in the sky, but the second brightest star in the
northern celestial hemisphere.
3. Betelgeuse
(pronounced “beetle juice”)
This supergiant star is the second brightest star in the Orion constellation
and is the ninth brightest in the sky. It is between 420-520 light years from
Earth. Betelgeuse is one of the largest stars known.
4. Deneb
This blue supergiant is 1500 light years away and is the brightest star in the
Cygnus Constellation. It is the 19th brightest star in the night sky, and is
approximately 60,000 times MORE luminous than our sun!
5. Polaris
Commonly referred to as The Pole Star or Northern Star, it is the brightest star
in the Ursa Minor Constellation, also known as The Little Dipper, and is
located in the handle of the constellation. Polaris is around 6,000 – 10,000
times brighter than the sun. Polaris is estimated to be around 432 light years
from Earth.
6. Orion
One the most popular and one of the largest constellations, Orion is also
known as The Hunter. Located on the celestial equator, Orion’s stars are
visible throughout the world. The brightest of these stars are Rigel,
Betelgeuse and Bellatrix.
7. Rigel
The sixth brightest star in the sky and the brightest star in the Orion
constellation, this blue supergiant is almost 100 times larger than the sun.
Rigel has a diameter over 60 million miles! Rigel is over 900 light years from
the Earth and is more than 50,000 times more luminous than the sun. Rigel is
almost always brighter than Betelgeuse.
8. Sirius
The brightest star in the sky (except for our sun). Also known as The Dog Star.
It is part of the Canis Major Constellation, which is also known as The Great
Dog Constellation. It is about twice the mass of our sun, and is over 70 times
 more luminous. Sirius is 8.6 light years from Earth. Sirius is actually a binary
star system: it appears to be only one star, but it is actually a main star and a
faint dwarf companion star.
o Complete Shining Stars Shape Book

More Learning Opportunities

Your lapbook also includes:
o Constellation Flap Book
Research constellations and complete this book.

o Night Sky Observations

Go outside at night and observe the sky. Draw and write about what you
saw. If desired, print more pages before creating your final book.

Materials and information may be used for your own personal and school use.
Material may not be used for resale or shared electronically. © HSS 2006-2020
 What shape is a star?

What Is a Star?

Star Facts Simple Folds

Directions: Cut books out on solid lines; fold on dotted lines.

Star Fact

How Many Stars Are

in the Milky Way?

© Homeschool Share
Directions: Cut out rectangles. Stack together (smallest to largest) with cover on top and staple.

Super Giants
Star Sizes

Giants

Red Giants
 Dwarf Stars

White Dwarfs

Star Sizes Layer Book

© Homeschool Share
Star Life Cycle Accordion

A Star is Born!
The Life Cycle of a Star
1. Stellar Nebula
Stars begin as clouds of dust and
gas. These clouds are called
nebulae. The gasses pull together,
and the cloud begins to spin. The
cloud gets hotter and hotter until
something called “nuclear fusion”
happens. A young star is born.

2. Main Sequence Star

The star will continue to burn
energy and glow. Main Sequence is
the state of the star for the
majority of its life. The star
remains in main sequence until it
runs out of a gas called hydrogen.

3. Red Giant
When the hydrogen runs out, the
outer shell of the star will begin to
expand, cool, and glow red. At this
point it has reached the red giant
phase. The mass of the star
determines the rest of its lifespan.
© Homeschool Share

4. Collapse
The star will begin to collapse. The
average star will become a white
dwarf star.
 Glue this tab to the back of the other strip. Then fold like an accordion.

4. Collapse (continued)
When a larger star collapses, it will
create an explosion called a
supernova.

After the supernova it may become a black hole or a neutron star.

Black Hole Neutron Star

Star Life Cycle Accordion

Directions: Cut out shapes on solid black lines. Fold on dotted lines
like an accordion (back and forth).

Glue back of last piece to your lapbook.

Hint: You might want to tie a ribbon or string around your accordion
before you glue the back to your lapbook.

© Homeschool Share
 Famous Stars Star Shape Book

Famous
Stars

Directions: Cut out the stars. Write

the name of a famous star on each
piece. If desired, add a fact, too.
Stack together with cover on top
and staple to secure.
© Homeschool Share
 Famous Stars Star Shape Book

© Homeschool Share
 Directions: Cut on solid lines. Fold on dotted. Under each flap, draw a picture of what the
constellation is supposed to represent, or write words to explain what it represents.

Constellations
Flap Book
Constellations
© Homeschool Share

Pisces Aquarius

Leo Aries

Gemini Scorpio
 Date _________________
Night Sky
Observations

_________________
_________________
_________________
_________________
_______________
Date _________________ Date _________________

_________________ _________________
_________________ _________________
_________________ _________________
_________________ _________________
_______________ _______________
© Homeschool Share
Planet Information
Mercury
Mercury is the closest planet to the sun. Its average distance from the sun is 36
million miles. Mercury has a quick orbit, making one complete revolution
around the sun every 88 earth days making that 0.241 earth years.

Compared to Earth, Mercury rotates on its axis slowly, making one complete
rotation every 58.6 earth days. Mercury is a terrestrial planet meaning it has a
solid surface. Its surface is covered with craters. Because of Mercury’s small size it
has almost no atmosphere to protect it from things like meteorites and the
Sun’s heat. What atmosphere it does have is composed of helium and hydrogen.
Such a lack of atmosphere allows extreme temperature changes. The side that
faces the sun can get as hot as 800°F and the side facing away from the sun
can get a cold as -360°F. Mercury is the second smallest planet with a diameter
of 3,031 miles. Its gravity is only 0.38 times as much as the gravity on earth.

Mercury was named after the Roman messenger of the gods. Mercury probably
received the name for the Roman messenger of the gods because it moves so
quickly across the sky.

Mercury does not have any moons.

Some fun about Mercury are:

All of the craters are named for artists, musicians and writers.
All of the valleys are named after observatories and the ridges and cliffs are
named after ships that have explored the earth.

Venus
Venus is the second planet from the sun. Its average distance from the sun is 67
million miles. Venus makes one revolution around the sun in 224.7 earth days
making that 0.615 earth years. Venus has the slowest rotation in the solar
system. It rotates on its axis once every 243 earth days. Venus has a rocky, solid
surface with several large craters.

Venus' atmosphere is 100 time thicker than Earths. It is made up of 90% carbon
dioxide and about 10% nitrogen. The sky of Venus is full of clouds made of
sulfuric acid. With such a thick atmosphere heat gets trapped and the surface
can get as hot as 900°F. Venus is the planet that is closest in size to the earth. Its
diameter is 7523 miles. Its gravity is 0.91 times that of earth.

Venus was named after the Roman goddess of love and beauty. Venus also has
no moons.

Some fun facts about Venus are:

Venus’ nicknames are the Evening Star or the Morning Star because, besides the
moon, it is one of the brightest objects in the nighttime sky. That is because of
its think atmosphere it reflects over 75% of the light that hits it.

Also there has been evidence of former lava flows. This shows that at one time
Venus had volcanic activity. It is believed that the surface use to be covered with
hundreds of volcanoes.

Earth
The third planet from the sun is Earth. Its average distance from the sun is 93
million miles. Earth’s revolution around the sun takes 365.26 days or 1 year. Its
rotation takes 23 hours, 56 minutes and 4 seconds, or one day.

Earth has a solid surface of which 72% of it is cover with water. The atmosphere
consists of 78% nitrogen, 20% oxygen, 0.9% argon and 0.1% carbon dioxide.
Earth’s temperature range is -60°F to 140°F. It has a diameter of 7926 miles. On
Earth gravity is figured out by multiplying by 1.

In Roman Mythology, the goddess of the earth was Tellus, which means the
fertile soil. In Greek Mythology the goddess’s name was Gaia which means
Mother Earth. The name Earth itself does not derive from Greek or Roman
Mythology but from Old English and Germanic. There are hundreds of other
names for the planet Earth in other languages.

Earth has one moon which is sometime referred to as Luna.

Some fun facts about Earth:

Out of all the planets Earth is the only one to have a significant amount of water.
Unlike Mercury, who has little atmosphere, and Venus, who’s atmosphere is to
thick, Earth has the perfect atmosphere to support life. At the equator, the Earth
is spinning at 1,000 mph about its axis and moving at 67,000 mph around the
sun.

Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the sun. The average distance from the sun is 142
million miles. Mars revolves once around the sun every 686.98 earth days
making that 1.88 in earth years. It rotates on its axis every 24 hours and 37
minutes.

Mars solid surface is mostly made up of iron oxide (rust) which accounts for its
red color and is covered with many craters, mountains and valleys. Mars’s
atmosphere is about 7% as thick as the atmosphere around the Earth making it
very thin and is composed mostly of 95.3% carbon dioxide, 2.7% nitrogen, 1.6%
argon, 0.15% oxygen, and 0.03% water.

Its temperature ranges from -220°F to 80°F. It has a diameter of 4222 miles. Mars
gravity is about the same as it is on Mercury and is 0.38 times the gravity on
Earth.

It was named after the Roman god of war, probably because of its red color.

There are two moons that revolve around Mars. Their names are Deimos and
Phobos.

Some fun facts about Mars are that the largest canyon on Mars would stretch
form NYC to LA on Earth. That makes the Grand Canyon look very small. Also
Mars has higher mountains and deeper canyons than any other planet in the
solar system.

Mars is also home to the biggest volcano in the solar system and it is called
Olympus Mons.

Mars moons were named after the attendants of the Roman god Mars.

Jupiter
The fifth and largest planet in our solar system is Jupiter. It is an average of 483
million miles from the sun. Jupiter takes 4332.59 earth days or 11.9 earth years
to revolve around the sun. However, it has the fastest rotation in the solar
system-- rotating every 9 hours and 55 minutes.

Jupiter’s nickname is the Gas Giant because it has an atmosphere mainly

composed of 90% hydrogen and 10% helium. Its atmosphere is hundreds of
miles thick. Jupiter’s average temperature is -250°F. Jupiter is 1 ½ times
larger than all of the other planets put together. It has a diameter of 89,372
miles. Because of Jupiter’s large mass it has a gravitational pull that is 2.64 times
that of Earth.

It was named after the ruler of all the Roman gods.

Jupiter has at least 63 moons. The four largest are referred to as the Galilean
moons because Galileo was who discovered them. They are called Io, Europa,
Ganymede and Callisto.

Some fun facts about Jupiter are:

You can see the four larger moons with a pair of binoculars at night.

Also because of its fast rotation, the planet bulges in the middle. So instead of
being round it is really short and fat.

Jupiter is home of the famous Great Red Spot. The Great Red Spot is a giant
windstorm that has winds like a super hurricane and it is the size of three Earths
put together. This storm is in the same position and is the same shape as it was
when it was first discovered 300 year ago.

One other thing, like Saturn, Jupiter has rings but they are much fainter and
smaller. Unlike Saturn’s, Jupiter’s rings are dark and do not contain ice.

Saturn
Saturn is the sixth planet from the sun and the second largest planet in the solar
system. It has an average distance of 888 million miles from the sun. Saturn
revolves around the sun once every 10759.2 earth days or 29.5 earth years. Like
Jupiter, Saturn spins very quickly on its axis, making one rotation every 10 hours
and 13 minutes. Saturn is a gas planet and its atmosphere consists of 75%
hydrogen and 25% helium.
Its average temperature is -300°F. Saturn has a diameter of 74,898 miles. Saturn
has a gravitational pull that is 1.13 times that of Earth.

Its name comes from the Roman god of agriculture.

Saturn has 34 moons, the most famous of which is Titan. Titan is the second
largest moon in the solar system; it is bigger than the planet Mercury.

Some fun facts:

Although Saturn isn’t the only planet with rings it is the one that is
famous for having them. When Galileo first discovered Saturn in 1610 he could
not see the rings clearly to know what they were. He thought that Saturn had
two smaller globes circling it because what he saw looked like “ears” on the side
of the planet.

In 1659, an astronomer named Christian Huygens was able to use a better

telescope and saw that the “ears” were actually rings around Saturn. The band of
rings is mostly composed of pieces of ice, dust and rocks and is about 170,000
miles across.

Uranus
Uranus is the seventh planet from the sun. The average distance from the sun is
1,783 million miles. It revolves around the sun once every 30,684 earth days or
84 earth years. Uranus spins on its axis once 17 hours and 14 minutes.

It is a gas planet with an atmosphere of 83% hydrogen, 15% helium and 2%

methane. Because Uranus is so far from the sun its average temperature is -
365°F. It has a diameter of 31,763 miles and its gravity is 1.17 times that of Earth.

Uranus is named for the Roman god of the heavens.

Uranus has 21 named moons and six unnamed ones. Some of their names are
Cordelia, Ophelia, Bianca, Cressida, Desdemona, Juliet, Portia, Rosalind, Belinda,
Puck, Miranda, Ariel, Umbriel, Titania, Oberon, Caliban, Sycorax, Prospero,
Setebos, and Stephano. Uranus' moons were named from the writings of
Shakespeare and Pope.

Some fun facts about Uranus are:

It rotates at a 90-degree angle compared to that rest of the planets. It’s as if it
was rotating on its side and appears to roll around the sun because of this
unusual tilt.

Uranus also has rings surrounding it. Scientists think there are 13 rings and like
Jupiter’s, they are very dark.

Since Uranus takes so long to orbit the sun, each season is 21 years long.

Neptune
The eighth planet from the sun is Neptune. Its average distance is 2794 million
miles from the sun. It revolves around the sun once every 60,190 earth days or
164.8 earth years and rotates on its axis once every 18 hours and 30 minutes.

Neptune is a gas planet whose atmosphere is made up of about 15% hydrogen

and a little helium.

Its average temperature is about -370°F. Neptune’s diameter is 30,775 miles. Its
gravity is 1.19 times that of Earth.

Neptune’s name came from the Roman god of the sea.

It has 13 moons one of which is named Triton who was the Greek god of the sea.

Some fun facts about Neptune are:

It is so far from the sun that from the surface the sun, it appears to be only a
bright star.

Also, like Jupiter, Neptune has what is believed to be a giant storm called the
Great Dark Spot. The winds in the Great Dark Spot blows at more
than 700 mph.

Neptune also has rings and like Uranus and Jupiter they are very dark
but their composition is unknown.

Materials and information may be used for your own personal and school use.
Material may not be used for resale or shared electronically. © HSS 2006-2020
Planets: Solid or Gas?

Mercury Venus Earth Mars

Saturn Uranus Neptune Jupiter

Solid
or
Gas?
Directions:
Cut out cards on solid black lines. Cut out
pocket as one piece. Fold tabs in. Fold
bottom flap up and glue right and left
edges to the tabs to create a pocket with
depth. Once glue is dry place your cards in
pocket. Fold top flap down and glue label to
the front. On the back of each card, write if
it is a solid or a gas. Use these cards for a
sorting game.
Planet Matchbooks
Earth Venus Jupiter Mars
Directions: Cut on solid black lines. Fold books matchbook style. Let your student write one interesting fact about each
planet on the inside of the book.
© Homeschool Share
 Planet Matchbooks
Mercury Neptune Saturn Uranus
Directions: Cut on solid black lines. Fold books matchbook style. Let your student write one interesting fact about each
planet on the inside of the book.
© Homeschool Share
Planet Temperatures Flapbook
Mercury
Planet
Venus
Temperatures
Earth
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
Uranus
Neptune
Pluto
Directions: Cut the book out as one piece. Fold left side under. Fold right side under (it is the cover). Unfold
book. Cut on the dotted lines between the names to form nine flaps.
© Homeschool Share
Planet Size Cards & Pocket
Mercury Venus Earth
Mars Jupiter Saturn
Uranus Neptune Pluto
Planet Size Cards & Pocket
Directions: Cut out the graphics provided. Write the size of the planet on the bottom part of the card. Store
cards in the pocket. Use cards for ordering activities. Can your student put the cards in order from the smallest
planet to the largest planet? Can you student put the cards in order from the largest planet to the smallest
planet?
Planet Sizes
Pocket Directions: Cut pocket out. Fold back flap up and wrap
side flaps around the back and glue down.
Glue the back of your pocket into your lapbook.
Terms of Use
This product may be used for your own classroom or personal use. It may not
be shared as a pdf file, on the web, or in any other way. It should not be
recreated or duplicated. © www.homeschoolshare.com

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