Identification and understanding of the planets in our solar system, how they relate to each other in

size, order from the sun, physical properties, and what is unique about each one.

Distance of the planet’s from Sun comparison:

Physical Properties:

1. Size: Planets can range in size from smaller rocky bodies like Mercury and Mars to larger gas giants
like Jupiter and Saturn.

2. Composition: Planets are made up of different materials. Inner planets, such as Mercury, Venus,
Earth, and Mars, are mostly composed of rock and metal. Outer planets, such as Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus,
and Neptune, are predominantly made up of gases like hydrogen and helium.

3. Atmosphere: Planets can have different atmospheres depending on their composition. Rocky planets
like Earth have a dense atmosphere consisting mainly of nitrogen, oxygen, and trace amounts of other
gases. Gas giants have thick atmospheres composed mainly of hydrogen and helium, along with traces
of other elements.

4. Temperature: The temperature on planets can vary greatly depending on their proximity to the Sun
and their atmospheric composition. Inner planets closer to the Sun, like Mercury and Venus, have higher
average temperatures, while outer planets like Neptune and Uranus have colder temperatures.

5. Surface conditions: Rocky planets like Earth have solid surfaces with various features such as
mountains, valleys, and oceans. Gas giants, on the other hand, do not have a solid surface and are
mostly composed of gases.
6. Orbits: Planets orbit around the Sun in elliptical paths. Inner planets have shorter orbital periods and
are closer to the Sun, while outer planets have longer orbital periods and are farther away.

Mercury: it has a crater-filled surface, with very high temperatures since it is closest to the sun; has a
very thin atmosphere.

Venus: also very hot with high pressures and a very thick atmosphere compared to other terrestrial
planets; slightly smaller than Earth.

Earth: only known planet to support life; mostly water but with many large landmasses, as well.

Mars: aka the Rusty planet, it sports a red color due to iron oxide; has valleys and volcanoes; colder than
Earth.

Jupiter: largest planet, with a swirling atmosphere and many different cloud formations; has storms and
63 moons; gas giant.

Saturn: also a gas giant; most known for its rings that are made up of particles that were attracted by the
planet's gravitational pull.

Uranus: known as the ice giant with a large atmosphere of methane, as well as a faint ring system.

Neptune: also very cold, and named the blue planet; the interior is mainly methane ice; has a faint ring
system and 13 moons.

Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun. It orbits the Sun quickly, once every 88 days. It rotates slowly,
however, only once every 59 days. Mercury is small, about 4850 kilometers (~3000 miles) in diameter.
Because Mercury is so close to the Sun, the side of its surface that faces the Sun is very hot, ~800oK. The
surface of Mercury is gray to orange in color, and is covered with craters. Mercury is named for a
mythical god who ran very fast.

Venus, the second planet away from the Sun, is Earth’s closest neighbor. It is about the same size as the
Earth, a little over 12,000 kilometers (7300 miles) in diameter. Venus has a very thick atmosphere,
composed largely of sulphuric acid and CO2. We could not breathe on Venus, because the atmosphere
would be very toxic to humans. This atmosphere gives Venus a brownish-yellow color. It also traps heat
(the greenhouse effect) making the surface of Venus the hottest in the Solar System, about 900oK.
Venus rotates very slowly, taking 243 days to complete one turn. It is named for the Roman goddess of
love.

Earth is a little more than 12,000 kilometers in diameter. It differs from the other planets because it has
liquid water on its surface, maintains life, and has active plate movement. It rotates on its axis every 24
hours (a day) and revolves around the Sun every 365 days (a year). The Earth has one moon.
Mars is a little more than half the size of the Earth, having a diameter of 6,790 kilometers. It takes Mars
687 days to revolve once around the Sun. It rotates at about the same speed as the Earth, taking 24.6
hours. Mars has a very thin atmosphere which is composed largely of CO2. Its surface is very cold, and is
covered with craters, volcanoes, and large canyons. Mars is reddish in color. Mars has two small moons.
It is named for the Roman god of war.

Jupiter is the largest planet in the Solar System, with a diameter of 142,980 kilometers, more than 11
times wider than the Earth. Jupiter orbits the Sun once every 12 years. It rotates very fast, in 9 hours and
19 minutes.. Its surface is made up of gas (mostly hydrogen), so that if you landed on the surface you
would sink into it. Jupiter probably has a core of metallic hydrogen and rock, although evidence for this
is theoretical. The outer gaseous part of Jupiter is broken into bands of white, yellow, red, and brown
clouds. Jupiter has 4 rings mainly composed of dust. Huge oval-shaped storms also occur on the surface.
Jupiter has 67 known satellites (as of 2016) including the four large Galilean moons (Io, Europa, Callisto,
and Ganymede) plus many more small ones some of which have not yet been named. Jupiter is named
for the Roman supreme god of heaven.

Saturn is well known for its system of three rings. It is a large planet: at 120,536 kilometers it is only a
little smaller than Jupiter. It revolves around the Sun in 29.46 earth years, and rotates a little more than
10 earth hours. Like Jupiter, Saturn is composed of mostly gas, and has a core composed of rock and
metallic hydrogen. The surface of Saturn looks banded, and has a brown-yellow, butterscotch color.
Saturn’s rings are probably composed of small particles of ice and rock. Saturn has 62 moons (as of
2016). It is named for the Roman god of agriculture.

Uranus is 51,118 kilometers in diameter, about 4.4 times the size of the Earth. It revolves around the
Sun slowly, taking 84 years to complete one orbit. It rotates in about 17 hours. It is covered by a thick
layer of gas, and has a fairly uniform blue-green color. Uranus has 27 moons (as of 2016) and is
surrounded by a system of nine rings. It is named for another Roman god, the grandfather of Jupiter

Neptune is slightly smaller than Uranus, with a diameter of 49,500 kilometers. It circles the Sun once
every 165 years, and rotates in 16 hours. Its atmosphere appears blue , and is marked by large dark blue
storm systems. It is surrounded by a system of five rings and at least 14 moons. Neptune is named for
the Roman god of the ocean.

Pluto in 2006 was renamed as a dwarf planet. It has an eccentric, oval-shaped orbit, which is tilted with
respect to the rest of the Solar System. Pluto revolves around the Sun in 248 years, and rotates in a
period of 6.4 days. Pluto is probably composed of rock. Its surface and color are unknown. It has one
large moon that is almost like a twin with 2 smaller moons. Pluto is named for the Roman god of outer
darkness.
The Earth/Sun relationship including: rotation and revolution, day/night, shadows, and seasons

Rotation and Revolution

"Rotation" refers to an object's spinning motion about its own axis. "Revolution" refers the object's
orbital motion around another object. For example, Earth rotates on its own axis, producing the 24-hour
day. Earth revolves about the Sun, producing the 365-day year.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l64YwNl1wr0

Why Does Earth Have Day and Night?

Earth is spinning every 24 hours Earth turns — or rotates on its axis — taking all of us with it. When we
are on the side of Earth that is facing the Sun, we have daylight. As Earth continues its spin, we are
moved to the side facing away from our Sun, and we have nighttime.

SHADOWS:

As the Earth moves around the Sun, it changes from being tilted towards the Sun to being tilted away,
and then back again. Shadows will be shorted when tilted towards the Sun and longer when tilted away.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SN1BOpLZAs

SEASONS:

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-earthscience/chapter/sun-earth-relationship-the-seasons/
#:~:text=Different%20areas%20also%20receive%20different,of%20rotation%20once%20each%20day.

https://www.calacademy.org/educators/why-do-we-have-different-seasons

The Earth/Sun/Moon relationship including: phases and relative positions of all three bodies, tides,
and both lunar and solar eclipses

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-earthscience/chapter/the-sun-and-the-earth-moon-system/