Physics Unit 2: The Solar System Learning Pack
Our Solar System
● Our solar system is in the Milky Way
● There are 8 planets in our Solar System.
● Planet: celestial body that orbits around the sun.
○ Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.
● The planets stay the same distance from the sun (on their own orbit)
● Planets have different length in day, night, years
● Asteroids: small, rocky bodies that orbit, or travel around, the sun. They are also called
minor planets or planetoids.
● Asteroid belt: place in space between Mars and Jupiter where most of the asteroids in
our Solar System are found
● Solar System Video
The Sun
● The Sun is a star at the centre of our Solar System.
● All planets revolve / orbit around the sun
● The Sun's gravitational magnetic field keeps the planets in our solar system orbiting
around it.
○ It plays an important role in maintaining the stability of our Solar system.
● Earth takes 365 days to revolve around the sun.
○ Other planets take shorter or longer depending of their distance from the run
● The Sun emits light and heat which are essential for life on Earth.
○ Sunlight takes about 8 minutes to travel from the Sun to Earth.
○ Planets are different distances from the sun so they will be hotter or colder
Sun Video
The earth
● The earth is divided into squares using
longitudinal and latitudinal lines that
help us find distance of earth
● Longitudinal lines determine time:
Every 15 degrees is 1hr from where
Prime meridian starts
Earth Rotation and Revolution
Rotation and Revolution Video
A Year
The earth takes 365 days (1 year) to orbit
the sun
Leap year
Every four years we have added an extra
day to our calendar to match the time. This
is called a leap year.
Day and Night
● The Earth rotates around its axis every
24 hours
● When our part of the Earth faces the Sun, we have a day.
● When we are facing away from the sun it is night
Seasons
● Because the Earth's axis tilts, it changes which parts of the Earth are closest to the Sun.
● When our part of the Earth leans
towards the Sun, we have summer.
● When it leans away from the sun, we
have winter.
Video: Seasons
The Moon
● The Moon revolves around the Earth.
● It takes 27 days to spin around the Earth.
○ This is called lunar cycle
● The moon does not shine by itself. It needs the sun to
shine on it so it looks like it is shining.
Moon and Ocean Tides/Currents
● High tides and low tides are caused by the moon.
● The moon's gravitational pull generates something called the tidal force.
● The tidal force causes Earth and its water to pull out on the side closest to the moon and
the side farthest from the moon.
Lunar Eclipse
● When the Moon passes behind the Earth and into its shadow.
● The Moon will shine red
Solar Eclipse
When the moon passes in front of the earth causing a shadow to fall on certain parts of the Earth.
