THE SOLAR SYSTEM

• Our solar system consists of an average

star we call the Sun, the planets 
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, 
Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto. It
includes: the satellites of the planets;
numerous comets, asteroids, and
meteoroids; and the interplanetary
medium.
THE MILKY WAY IS THE GALAXY
THAT CONTAINS OUR SOLAR
SYSTEM, WITH THE NAME
DESCRIBING THE GALAXY'S
APPEARANCE FROM EARTH: A
HAZY BAND OF LIGHT SEEN IN
THE NIGHT SKY FORMED FROM
STARS THAT CANNOT BE
INDIVIDUALLY DISTINGUISHED
BY THE NAKED EYE.
THIS ILLUSTRATION SHOWS THE OBLIQUITY OF THE EIGHT PLANETS.
OBLIQUITY IS THE ANGLE BETWEEN A PLANET'S EQUATORIAL PLANE AND ITS
ORBITAL PLANE. BY INTERNATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL UNION (IAU)
CONVENTION, A PLANET'S NORTH POLE LIES ABOVE THE ECLIPTIC PLANE. BY
THIS CONVENTION, VENUS, URANUS, AND PLUTO HAVE A RETROGRADE
ROTATION, OR A ROTATION THAT IS IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION FROM THE
OTHER PLANETS. THE FOLLOWING TABLE LISTS THE OBLIQUITY AND
ROTATION PERIOD OF EACH OF THE PLANETS.
THE OBJECTS IN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM
• THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT TYPES OF OBJECTS FOUND IN THE SOLAR
SYSTEM: A STAR, PLANETS, MOONS, DWARF PLANETS, COMETS,
ASTEROIDS, GAS, AND DUST. IN TERMS OF THE NUMBERS OF EACH OF
THESE OBJECTS, OUR CURRENT KNOWLEDGE IS AS FOLLOWS:
1 STAR (THE SUN)
8 PLANETS (MERCURY, VENUS, EARTH, MARS, JUPITER, SATURN, 
URANUS, AND NEPTUNE)
5 DWARF PLANETS (PLUTO, CERES, HAUMEA, MAKEMAKE, AND 
ERIS)
181 MOONS
566,000 ASTEROIDS
3,100 COMETS
WHAT IS THE SUN?
THE SUN IS WHAT IS KNOWN AS A MAIN SEQUENCE STAR; THAT IS, A
SPHERE COMPOSED PRIMARILY OF THE TWO GASES HYDROGEN AND
HELIUM SUCH THAT CERTAIN CONDITIONS ARE MET. THE FIRST
CONDITION IS THAT IT MUST HAVE A MASS FALLING WITHIN A
CERTAIN RANGE. 
Facts about the sun
The sun accounts for 99.86% of the mass in the solar system. 
The energy created by the sun’s core is nuclear fusion. 
The sun is almost a perfect sphere.
The sun is travelling at 220 km per second.
The sun will eventually be about the size of earth.
It takes eight minutes for light reach earth from the sun. 
The sun is halfway through its life.
The distance between earth and sun changes.
The sun rotates in the opposite direction to earth 
The sun rotates more quickly at its equator.
The sun has a powerful magnetic field. 
Temperatures inside the sun can reach 15 million degrees celsius.
The sun generates solar winds. .
The atmosphere of the sun is composed of three layers: the photosphere, the
chromosphere, and the corona.
The sun is classified as a yellow dwarf star.The aurora borealis and aurora australis are
caused by the interaction of solar winds with earth’s atmosphere.
MOON FACTS
AT A DISTANCE OF 384,400 KM FROM THE EARTH, THE MOON IS OUR CLOSEST
CELESTIAL NEIGHBOUR AND ONLY NATURAL SATELLITE. BECAUSE OF THIS
FACT, WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO GAIN MORE KNOWLEDGE ABOUT IT THAN ANY
OTHER BODY IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM BESIDES THE EARTH. LIKE THE EARTH
ITSELF, THE MOON IS UNIQUE IN SOME WAYS AND RATHER ORDINARY IN
OTHERS.
SIZE OF THE MOON COMPARED TO THE
EARTH
WHAT IS THE MOON?
AT ITS MOST FUNDAMENTAL, THE MOON IS AN ASTRONOMICAL BODY. BUT
THAT IS NOT ALL. THE MOON IS ALSO THE EARTH’S ONLY PERMANENT
SATELLITE.
THE MOON IS ALSO THE BRIGHTEST OBJECT IN THE EARTH’S NIGHT SKY,
SECOND ONLY TO THE SUN ITSELF.
THE MOON MEASURES 2,195 MILES (3,475 KM) FROM END TO END.
THE MOON IS CALLED A TERRESTRIAL PLANET, A CATEGORY IT SHARES WITH
THE EARTH ITSELF AS WELL AS MARS, VENUS AND MERCURY. (IN CONTRAST,
THE MORE DISTANT PLANETS ARE CALLED JOVIAN OR GIANT PLANETS.)
INTERESTINGLY, A BAND OF ASTEROIDS SEPARATES THE MOON AND ITS
NEIGHBORING TERRESTRIAL PLANETS FROM THE OUTER GIANT PLANETS.
WHAT IS AN ASTEROID?
AN ASTEROID IS A SMALL BODY ORBITING THE SUN
 THAT IS COMPOSED PRIMARILY OF ROCK OR METAL.
FACTS ABOUT ASTEROIDS
ASTEROIDS ARE SMALL, ROCKY OBJECTS THAT ORBIT THE SUN.
THE FIRST ASTEROID WAS CERES, DISCOVERED BY GIUSEPPE PIAZZI IN
1801.
THERE ARE CURRENTLY OVER 600,000 KNOWN ASTEROIDS IN OUR
SOLAR SYSTEM.
MOST ASTEROIDS ARE FOUND ORBITING IN THE ASTEROID BELT, A
SERIES OF RINGS LOCATED BETWEEN THE ORBITS OF MARS AND
JUPITER.
ASTRONOMER WILLIAM HERSCHEL FIRST COINED THE WORD
ASTEROID, WHICH MEANS “STAR LIKE” IN 1802.
AS WELL AS BEING THE FIRST ASTEROID DISCOVERED, CERES IS ALSO
THE LARGEST KNOWN ASTEROID AT 933 KILOMETERS (580 MILES)
ACROSS. THE SMALLEST KNOWN ASTEROID, 1991 BA, IS ONLY 6 METERS
(20 FEET) ACROSS.
METEORITE FACTS
A METEORITE IS A BRIGHT STREAK OF LIGHT IN THE SKY, OFTEN
REFERRED TO AS A "SHOOTING STAR" OR "FALLING STAR" AND IT IS
SIMPLY MATERIAL FROM THE SOLAR SYSTEM FALLING TO EARTH.
COMET FACTS
COMETS, LIKE ASTEROIDS, ARE SMALL CELESTIAL BODIES THAT ORBIT THE SUN.
HOWEVER, UNLIKE ASTEROIDS, COMETS ARE COMPOSED PRIMARILY OF
FROZEN AMMONIA, METHANE OR WATER, AND CONTAIN ONLY SMALL
AMOUNTS OF ROCKY MATERIAL. AS A RESULT OF THIS COMPOSITION COMETS
HAVE BEEN GIVEN THE NICKNAME OF "DIRTY SNOWBALLS."
 PARTS OF A COMET

NUCLEUS: THE NUCLEUS OF A COMET IS COMPOSED OF ICE AND ROCKY MATERIAL.

THE NUCLEUS OF MOST COMETS RANGES FROM ABOUT 10 TO 100 KM IN
DIAMETER, THOUGH THEY CAN BE AS LARGE AS 100 KM IN DIAMETER.

COMA: THE CLOUD OF GASES THAT FORMS AROUND THE NUCLEUS AS THE COMA IS
HEATED IS KNOW AS THE COMA. THESE GASES ARE USUALLY A MIXTURE OF WATER
VAPOR, AMMONIA, CARBON DIOXIDE.

DUST TAIL: THE DUST TAIL OF A COMET IS COMPOSED OF GASES AND TINY DUST
PARTICLES BLOWN AWAY FROM THE NUCELUS AS THE COMET IS HEATED. THE DUST
TAIL IS THE MOST VISIBLE PART OF A COMET.
ION TAIL: THE ION TAIL IS A STREAM OF IONIZED GASES THAT ARE BLOWN DIRECTLY
AWAY FROM THE SUN AS A RESULT OF THE COMET’S CONTACT WITH THE SOLAR
WIND.
TYPES OF
PLANETS
THE TERRESTRIAL PLANETS

THE TERRESTRIAL PLANETS ARE THE FOUR INNERMOST

PLANETS IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM, MERCURY, VENUS, 
EARTH AND MARS. THEY ARE CALLED TERRESTRIAL
BECAUSE THEY HAVE A COMPACT, ROCKY SURFACE LIKE
THE EARTH'S. THE PLANETS, VENUS, EARTH, AND MARS
HAVE SIGNIFICANT ATMOSPHERES WHILE MERCURY HAS
ALMOST NONE. THE FOLLOWING DIAGRAM SHOWS THE
APPROXIMATE DISTANCE OF THE TERRESTRIAL PLANETS
TO THE SUN.
THE JOVIAN PLANETS

JUPITER, SATURN, URANUS, AND NEPTUNE ARE KNOWN

AS THE JOVIAN (JUPITER-LIKE) PLANETS, BECAUSE THEY
ARE ALL GIGANTIC COMPARED WITH EARTH, AND THEY
HAVE A GASEOUS NATURE LIKE JUPITER'S. THE JOVIAN
PLANETS ARE ALSO REFERRED TO AS THE GAS GIANTS,
ALTHOUGH SOME OR ALL OF THEM MIGHT HAVE SMALL
SOLID CORES. THE FOLLOWING DIAGRAM SHOWS THE
APPROXIMATE DISTANCE OF THE JOVIAN PLANETS TO
THE SUN.
MERCURY IS THE CLOSEST PLANET TO THE SUN AND IS ALSO
THE SMALLEST OF THE EIGHT PLANETS IN OUR 
SOLAR SYSTEM. FOR EVERY 2 ORBITS OF THE SUN, WHICH
TAKES AROUND 88 EARTH DAYS, MERCURY COMPLETES
THREE ROTATIONS OF ITS AXIS. IT IS GRAVITATIONALLY
LOCKED AND THIS ROTATION IS UNIQUE TO THE SOLAR
SYSTEM.
Facts about mercury

Mercury has been known to humanity since ancient times and although its
discovery date is unknown, the first mentions of the planet are believed to be
around 3000 BC by the sumerians.
A year in mercury is 88 days, yet a mercury day is 176 earth days.
Mercury orbits so quickly around the sun that early civilizations believed it
was actually two different stars – one which appeared in the morning and
another which appeared in the evening.
Mercury is the smallest planet in the solar system with a diameter of 4,879
km and is one of five planets that is visible to the naked eye.
After the earth, mercury is the second densest planet. 
Mercury is named after the messenger of the roman gods, who is also known
as hermes in greek mythology. This is because of the speed in which mercury
orbits the sun and the speed with which mercury the roman deity was able to
deliver messages.
The planet has just 38% of the gravity on earth. 
Mercury has no moons or rings.
VENUS IS THE SECOND PLANET FROM THE SUN AND THE THIRD BRIGHTEST OBJECT IN
EARTH'S SKY AFTER THE SUN AND MOON. IT IS SOMETIMES REFERRED TO AS THE SISTER
PLANET TO EARTH, BECAUSE THEIR SIZE AND MASS ARE SO SIMILAR. VENUS IS ALSO THE
CLOSEST PLANET TO EARTH. THE SURFACE OF VENUS IS HIDDEN BY AN OPAQUE LAYER OF
CLOUDS WHICH ARE FORMED FROM SULPHURIC ACID.
THE PLANET IS NAMED FOR VENUS, THE ROMAN GODDESS OF LOVE AND BEAUTY AND IS
THE SECOND LARGEST TERRESTRIAL PLANET.
Facts about venus

Venus is the second brightest natural object in the sky. The planet has an
apparent magnitude of -3.8 to -4.6, which makes it visible on a bright, clear day.
The moon is the only other natural object that is brighter.
Venus is sometimes referred to as the “morning star” and “evening star”. This
dates back to ancient civilizations who believed that venus was in fact two distinct
stars appearing in the sky. When the orbit of venus overtakes earth’s orbit, it
changes from being visible at sunrise to being visible at sunset.
One day on venus is longer than one year. Due to the slow rotation on its axis, it
takes 243 earth-days to complete one rotation.
Venus is named after the roman goddess of love and beauty. This may be, in
part, due the brightness of the planet and may date back to the babylonians in
1581 who referred to venus as “bright queen of the sky”.
Venus is sometimes called earth’s sister planet. This is because their size is very
similar (there is only a 638 km different in diameter) and venus has around 81% of
earth’s mass. They are also similarly located with venus being the closest planet to
earth. Both planets also have a central core, a molten mantle and a crust.
EARTH IS THE THIRD PLANET FROM THE SUN AND LARGEST OF THE 
TERRESTRIAL PLANETS. SURPRISINGLY, WHILE IT IS ONLY THE FIFTH
LARGEST PLANET IN TERMS OF SIZE AND MASS, IT IS THE DENSEST
(5,513 KG/M3) OF ALL THE PLANETS. EARTH IS THE ONLY PLANET IN
THE SOLAR SYSTEM NOT NAMED AFTER A MYTHOLOGICAL BEING.
INSTEAD, ITS NAME IS DERIVED FROM THE OLD ENGLISH WORD
"ERTHA" AND THE ANGLO-SAXON WORD "ERDA" WHICH MEANS
GROUND OR SOIL.
Facts about earth

The earth was once believed to be the centre of the universe.

Earth is the only planet not named for a mythological god or goddess. 
Earth is the most dense planet in the solar system. 
The gravity between the earth and the moon causes the tides on earth. This effect
on the moon means it is tidally locked to earth – its rotation period is the same as its
orbit time so it always presents the same face to earth.
The rotation of the earth is gradually slowing down. 
Earth’s atmosphere is composed of 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and trace amounts of
other gases including argon and carbon dixoide.
The large amount of oxygen on earth comes from our plant life’s consumption of
carbon dioxide during photosynthesis.
Earth has a very powerful magnetic field. The earth has an ozone layer which
protects it from harmful solar radiation. This shell is a special type of oxygen that
absorbs most of the sun’s powerful UV rays.
70% of the earth’s surface is covered by water – the remainder consists of continents
and islands which together have many lakes and other sources of water.
MARS IS THE FOURTH PLANET FROM THE SUN AND LAST OF THE 
TERRESTRIAL PLANETS. LIKE THE REST OF THE PLANETS IN 
THE SOLAR SYSTEM (EXCEPT EARTH), MARS IS NAMED AFTER A
MYTHOLOGICAL FIGURE - THE ROMAN GOD OF WAR. IN ADDITION TO ITS
OFFICIAL NAME, MARS IS SOMETIMES CALLED THE RED PLANET BECAUSE OF
THE BROWNISH-RED COLOR OF ITS SURFACE. MARS IS THE SECOND
SMALLEST PLANET IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM BEHIND MERCURY.
JUPITER FACTS
NAMED AFTER THE ROMAN KING OF THE GODS, JUPITER IS FITTING OF
ITS NAME. WITH A MASS OF 1.90 X 10 27 KG AND A MEAN DIAMETER OF
139,822 KM, JUPITER IS EASILY THE LARGEST AND MOST MASSIVE
PLANET IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM. TO PUT THIS IN PERSPECTIVE, IT WOULD
TAKE 11 EARTHS LINED UP NEXT TO EACH OTHER TO STRETCH FROM
ONE SIDE OF JUPITER TO THE OTHER AND IT WOULD TAKE 317 EARTHS
TO EQUAL THE MASS OF JUPITER.
 MOONS OF JUPITER

JUPITER HAS 67 CONFIRMED MOONS ORBITING THE PLANET. THESE

MOONS ARE SEPARATED INTO THREE GROUPS:
INNER MOONS. THESE ORBIT THE CLOSEST TO JUPITER AND ARE
SOMETIMES CALLED THE AMALTHEA GROUP. THE NAMES OF THE INNER
MOONS OF JUPITER ARE METIS, ADRASTEA, AMALTHEA, AND THEBE.
GALILEAN MOONS. THESE ARE LARGEST OF JUPITER’S MOONS AND
WERE DISCOVERED BY GALILEO GALILEI IN 1610 – IO, EUROPA, 
GANYMEDE AND CALLISTO.
OUTER MOONS. THESE MOONS ARE MUCH SMALLER AND FURTHER
AWAY FROM JUPITER. THEY ALSO HAVE IRREGULAR, ELLIPTICAL ORBIT
PATHS AND MANY ARE CAPTURED ASTEROIDS.
SATURN IS THE SIXTH PLANET FROM THE SUN AND SECOND LARGEST PLANET
OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM IN TERMS OF DIAMETER AND MASS. IF COMPARED, IT
IS EASY TO SEE WHY SATURN AND JUPITER HAVE BEEN DESIGNATED AS
RELATIVES. FROM ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION TO ROTATION, THESE TWO
PLANETS ARE EXTREMELY SIMILAR. BECAUSE OF THESE FACTORS, SATURN
WAS NAMED AFTER THE FATHER OF THE GOD JUPITER IN ROMAN
MYTHOLOGY.
URANUS, NAMED AFTER THE THE FATHER OF THE
ROMAN GOD SATURN, IS THE SEVENTH PLANET IN
THE SOLAR SYSTEM AND THIRD OF THE GAS GIANTS.
IT IS THE THIRD LARGEST PLANET BY DIAMETER, YET
FOURTH MOST MASSIVE.
NEPTUNE IS THE EIGHTH PLANET FROM THE SUN AND
LAST OF THE KNOWN PLANETS. WHILE IT IS THE THIRD
LARGEST PLANET WITH RESPECT TO MASS, IT IS ONLY
THE FOURTH LARGEST IN TERMS OF DIAMETER. DUE TO
ITS BLUE COLORATION, NEPTUNE WAS NAMED AFTER
THE ROMAN GOD OF THE SEA.
Facts about neptune
It takes neptune 164.8 earth years to orbit the sun. On
11 july 2011, neptune completed its first full orbit since its
discovery in 1846.
Neptune was discovered by jean joseph le verrier. The
planet was not known to ancient civilizations because it is
not visible to the naked eye. The planet was initially called
le verrier after its discoverer. This name, however, quickly
was abandoned and the name neptune was chosen
instead.
Neptune is the roman god of the sea. In greek, neptune
is called poseidon.
Neptune has the second largest gravity of any planet in
the solar system – second only to jupiter.
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