Solar System Fact Sheet (Source: http://solarsystem.nasa.gov; http://solarviews.com)
The Solar System Categories
Mercury
Venus
Earth
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
Uranus
Neptune
Rocky or Gas
Rocky
Rocky
Rocky
Rocky
Gas
Gas
Gas
Gas
57.9
108.2
149.6
227.9
778.3
1,427
2,871
5,914
Revolution (Year)
88 Days
225 Days
365 Days
687 Days
12 Years
29 Years
84 Years
165 Years
Rotation (Day)
59 days
243 days (backwards)
23 hours 56 min.
24 hours 31 min.
9 hours 55 min.
10 hours 42 min.
17 hours 12 min. (backwards)
16 hours 6 min.
Diameter (kilometers)
4,880
12,100
12,756
6,794
143,200
120,000
51,800
49,528
Moons
0
0
1
2
63
63
27
13
Rings
No
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Temperature
-300o F. to 800 o F.
900 o F.
-125o F. to 125o F.
-200o F. to 72o F.
-230o F. (average)
-284o F. (average)
-383o F. (average)
-392o F. (average)
Weight on Planet*
.38
.86
1
.38
2.87
1.32
.93
1.23
Distance from Sun (millions of kilometers)
Categories
Mercury
Venus
Earth
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
Uranus
Neptune
Atmosphere
Various gases
CO2
Nitrogen Oxygen
Carbon Dioxide
Hydrogen Helium
Hydrogen Helium
Very Thin
Thicker
Thicker
Thin
Very Thick
Very Thick
Hydrogen Helium Methane
Hydrogen Helium Methane
Very Thick
Very Thick
*To calculate your weight on the Sun or planet, multiply your weight by the number in the column. For example, if you weighed 100 pound on Earth, you would weigh 38 pounds on Mercury, 86 pounds on Venus, etc.
Other Bodies in the Solar System Major Moons Revolves Around
Distance from Planet (km)
Diameter (km)
Your weight on moon*
Atmosphere
Larger than Mercury
Earth
384,000
3,500
.16
None
No
Io
Jupiter
421,600
3,600
.18
Very thin; sulfur gas from volcanoes.
No
Europa
Jupiter
671,000
3,200
.13
Very thin; oxygen.
No
Ganymede
Jupiter
1,100,000
5,300
.15
Very thin; oxygen.
Yes**
Callisto
Jupiter
1,890,000
4,800
.13
None
No
Moon
Moon
Revolves Around
Distance from Planet (km)
Diameter (km)
Your weight on moon*
Atmosphere
Larger than Mercury
Enceladus
Saturn
238,000
500
.003 (est.)
Water Vapor
No
Titan
Saturn
1,222,000
5,150
.15
Nitrogen/Methane
Yes
Miranda
Uranus
130,000
470
.001 (est.)
None
No
Triton
Neptune
355,000
2,700
.06 (est.)
Very thin; nitrogen ice particles.
No
Charon
Pluto
19,700
1,180
.03 (est.)
None
No
Moon
* Your weight times the number in the column. **Ganymede is the largest moon in the Solar System.
Surface Features of Major Moons Moon Moon
Surface Features Surface covered with craters. There are also flat areas of lava flow (called Maria – Latin for seas).
Io
Io is covered with active volcanoes that erupt with molten sulfur. Molten sulfur is also thrown into the atmosphere; most falls to the surface as “snow.” Surface colors are brown, orange, and yellow.
Europa
Entire surface is ice. There are ice volcanoes. The surface shows movement similar to that around the North Pole, indicating the possibilities of a water ocean under the ice.
Ganymede Callisto
Has an icy surface. May have a liquid water ocean underneath the ice. Very heavily craters. May have ocean underneath the surface that filled older craters. Craters on surface indicate the oldest surface in the Solar System.
Moon
Surface Features
Enceladus
Very bright, icy surface. The surface is split; there are plains. The surface has numerous ridges and rough terrain. There are water jets coming from the surface. There may be a liquid ocean under the surface.
Titan
Surface cannot be seen because of thick clouds in atmosphere. The Cassini probe and Huygens Lander have shown a frozen surface with methane lakes. There appear to be mountains, rivers, channels, and plains. Surface may be similar to that of the Earth.
Miranda
Its surface is unlike anything in the Solar System. Miranda may be have been broken apart by a collision with a moon long ago. It appears the moon may have come back together in a jumbled fashion. There are canyons, mountains, and rough surfaces. The most prominent feature on the surface is an area that is shaped like a chevron (V-shaped).
Triton
Triton’s surface is covered with ridged areas, canyons, and grooves. Liquid nitrogen geysers also cover the surface.
Charon
May be covered with water ice and little rock.
Dwarf Planets Body
Diameter (kilometers)
Distance from Sun (millions of kilometers)
Rotation (Day)
Revolution (Year)
Moons
Rings
Eris (Icy) (plutoid*)
2,400
5,700 (closest)** 14,700 (farthest)
Unknown
557 Earth Years
1
No
Temperature Atmosphere
-406o F.
None
Weight on Body*** .07
Body
Diameter (kilometers)
Distance from Sun (millions of kilometers)
Rotation (Day)
Revolution (Year)
Moons
Rings
Pluto (Icy/Rocky) (plutoid*)
2,300
4,400 (closest)** 7,400 (farthest)
6.4 Earth Days
248 Earth Years
3
No
-380o F.
Nitrogen, CO2, and Methane (Thin)
.07
Haumea (how-MAYuh) (Icy/Rocky) (plutoid*)
(Eggshaped) 2,000 x 1,000
5,300 (closest)** 7,700 (farthest)
3 hrs 55 min
285 Earth Years
2
No
-402o F.
?
.05
MakeMake (Mah-Key) (Icy) (plutoid*)
1,300 – 1,900
5,700 (closest)** 8,000 (farthest)
?
310 Earth Years
0
No
-406o F.
Methane
.05
Ceres (Rocky)
950
446
9 hours
4.6 Earth Years
0
No
-100o F. (Sun high overhead)
None
.003
Temperature Atmosphere
*Plutoid – a dwarf planet outside the orbit of Neptune. **Closest – closest approach to Sun; Farthest – farthest distance from Sun. ***Your weight times the number in the column.
Weight on Body***
Comets Composition (what they are made of!)
Location of Comets
Distance from Sun (km)
Number
-Water ice, dry ice, ammonia ice, dirt, and rocks. -Sometimes called “dirty snowballs” or “icy mudballs.”
Come from the Kuiper Belt (outside the orbit of Neptune) or the Oort Cloud (Oort Cloud named after Jan Oort who proposed its existence [has not been confirmed])
10,000,000,000,000 (one light year)
Over 1,000,000,000,000
(source: Amateur Observer’s Program – Comets & Asteroids)
Main Parts of a Comet Nucleus – The “dirty
snowball.” Coma – Dense cloud of vaporized ices and dirt that surrounds
Nucleus. Tail – Gases and other particles blown off the comet by the Solar Wind (particles from the Sun). Always points away from the Sun.
A comet’s path around the Sun 2
3
1 6 5
4
1. At first, a comet is nothing more than a dirty frozen “snowball” in space. 2. As it approaches the Sun, the gases start vaporizing and you start to see the coma. 3. As the comet gets close enough to the Sun, a tail forms (made of dirt and gas being pushed away from the comet’s nucleus by the solar wind). 4. It passes around the Sun. The tail is longest at this point. (If the comet gets close enough to the Sun, it can break-up into many pieces. It can also get close enough to be pulled into the Sun.) 5. It moves away form the Sun. The tail is smaller and pointing away from the Sun. It is pushed by the solar wind. 6. It gets fainter and the tail smaller. Eventually it can no longer be seen.
(source: crystalinks.com)
Asteroids Composition
Locations
Distance from Sun (km)
Number
Size Range
Irregular rocky bodies
Most found between orbit of Mars & Jupiter
270,000,000 to 675,000,000
Over 150,000
526 km to around 100 meters
Two Largest Vesta – 526 km Pallas – 520 km
Meteoroids/Meteors/Meteorites Where They Come From -Most come from the Asteroid Belt. -Few come from particles left from comets when Earth crosses their path.
Size Range Grain of sand to less than 100 meters.
Definition of a Meteoroid Grain or rock that is travelling in space.
Definition of a Meteor
Definition of a Meteorite
Grain or rock that has entered the atmosphere (sometimes called “shooting” or “falling” star.)
A meteor that is large enough to survive the trip through the atmosphere and hit the Earth’s surface.
Do I Need a Telescope? Solar System Body
Visible Without a Telescope
Mercury
Yes
Venus
Yes
Mars
Yes
Asteroids
No
Jupiter
Yes
Saturn
Yes
Uranus
No
Neptune
No
Dwarf Planets
No
Solar System Body
Visible Without a Telescope
Comets
Depends**
**Comets are not visible without a telescope when they are far from the Sun. As they approach the Sun, the size of the comet, how much light it reflects, and how close to Earth it gets all affect if it can be seen without a telescope. Some can, but most cannot be seen without a telescope.
