The Solar System

1. The Solar System Devin Gibson

2. Overview

3. Mercury • Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun. • Mercury orbits at 29 miles per second. • Temperatures range from 700 degrees to –300 degrees Fahrenheit.

4. Venus • Venus is the second planet from the Sun. • Temperature is about 900 degrees Fahrenheit. • Venus spins backwards on its axis.

5. Earth • Earth is the third planet from the Sun. • Earth has oceans of water, and an oxygen-rich atmosphere. • Earth has intelligent life. • The distance from the surface to the center of the Earth is about 2,000 miles. Our home planet

6. Mars • Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun. • Mars is smaller and colder than Earth. • Temperatures range from 30 degrees to –220 degrees Fahrenheit. Our nearest neighbor.

7. Jupiter • Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun. • Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system. • Jupiter’s fast rotation causes the clouds to form bands. • Big red spot in southern hemisphere is a hurricane-like storm. Starts with a J.

9. Saturn • Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun. • Saturn is known as the “ringed” planet. • Rings are made of ice and rock. • Winds at the equator reach speeds of 1,100 miles per hour. Starts with S.

10. Uranus • Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun. • Uranus is the third largest planet in the solar system. • Named after the father of Saturn in Roman mythology. • Summers and winters on Uranus last 42 years.

11. Neptune • Neptune is the eighth planet from the Sun. • Neptune is the fourth-largest planet in the solar system. • Neptune is sometimes further from the Sun than Pluto.

12. Pluto • Pluto is the ninth planet from the Sun. • Pluto is smaller than the Earth’s moon. • Pluto is the smallest planet. • Pluto has an elliptical orbit.

13. Sun Facts Astronomy Class Lecture

14. What is the Sun? • Is a ball of hot gases. • Is 70% hydrogen, 28% helium, 1.5% carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen, and 0.5% all other elements. • The Sun's temperature is 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit at the surface and 27,000,000 degrees Fahrenheit at the center.

15. The Sun Distances • The average distance from the Earth to the Sun is 93,000,000 miles. It takes light eight and a half minutes to travel from the Sun to the Earth. • The diameter of the Sun is 870,000 miles, 109 times larger than the Earth's. Its volume is big enough to hold over 1 million Earths.

16. Looking at the sun? • DO NOT LOOK AT THE SUN, EVEN WITH DARK OR SMOKED GLASSES. • DO NOT LOOK AT THE SUN WITH BINOCULARS OR SMALL TELESCOPES. • YOU CAN DAMAGE YOUR EYES! NEVER LOOKED AT THE SUN DIRECTLY

17. Studying the Sun • Scientists study the sun with instruments on the Ulysses spacecraft. • Ulysses is a joint effort of NASA and the European Space Agency. • Ulysses was launched in October 1990. • It is the first spacecraft to orbit the Sun's North and South poles.

18. Sun Facts Astronomy Class Lecture

19. What is the Sun? • Is a ball of hot gases. • Is 70% hydrogen, 28% helium, 1.5% carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen, and 0.5% all other elements. • The Sun's temperature is 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit at the surface and 27,000,000 degrees Fahrenheit at the center.

20. The Sun Distances • The average distance from the Earth to the Sun is 93,000,000 miles. It takes light eight and a half minutes to travel from the Sun to the Earth. • The diameter of the Sun is 870,000 miles, 109 times larger than the Earth's. Its volume is big enough to hold over 1 million Earths.

21. Looking at the sun? • DO NOT LOOK AT THE SUN, EVEN WITH DARK OR SMOKED GLASSES. • DO NOT LOOK AT THE SUN WITH BINOCULARS OR SMALL TELESCOPES. • YOU CAN DAMAGE YOUR EYES! NEVER LOOKED AT THE SUN DIRECTLY

22. Studying the Sun • Scientists study the sun with instruments on the Ulysses spacecraft. • Ulysses is a joint effort of NASA and the European Space Agency. • Ulysses was launched in October 1990. • It is the first spacecraft to orbit the Sun's North and South poles.