Ellen Estenfelder. Overview The SunThe PlanetsMoons.

Ellen Estenfelder

Overview

MercuryMercury is the closest planet to the Sun.Mercury orbits at 29 miles per second.Temperatures range from 700 degrees to

–300 degrees Fahrenheit.

VenusVenus is the second planet from the Sun.Temperature is about 900 degrees

Fahrenheit.Venus spins backwards on its axis.

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.

MarsMars 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.

JupiterJupiter 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.

The planet Jupiter's four largest moons are called the Galilean satellites, after Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei, who observed them in 1610.

These large moons are Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto.

Ten of the Moons of Jupiter:

1. Metis

2. Adrastea

3. Amalthea

4. Thebe

5. Io

6. Europa

7. Ganymede

8. Callisto

9. Themisto

10. Leda

The German astronomer Simon Marius claimed to have seen the moons around the same time, but he did not publish his observations and so Galileo is given the credit for their discovery.

SaturnSaturn 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.

UranusUranus 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.

NeptuneNeptune 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.

PlutoPluto 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.

P l a n e tD i s t a n c e f r o m S u n

i n M i l l i o n k m

Mercury 57.9

Venus 108.2

Earth 149.6

Mars 227.8

J upiter 778

Saturn 1,427.00

Uranus 2,870.00

Neptune 4,500.00

Pluto 5,900.00

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Distance from Sun in Million km

Distance from Sun in Million km

Astronomy Class Lecture

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.

The Sun DistancesThe 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.

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

Studying the SunScientists 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.