OUR SOLAR SYSTEM
Our Solar System consists of many planets with ranging shapes and sizes. There are a total of eight planets, Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. In addition to these eight planets, the Solar System also contains asteroids, dwarf planets, moons, comets and many other celestrial bodies. All of the planets in the Solar System orbit our sun. For more detailed information of each planet, scroll below.
MERCURY
Mercury is the smallest planet in our solar system and does not have any moons . It is also the closest planet to our sun, though they are spread apart from each other over a massive 57 million kilometres. Mercury is often known as 'The Morning Star' and 'The Evening Star' as it is visible (shines brightly) during these times. Mercury takes 87.969 Earth days to complete a full rotation of the sun. Mercury's mass consists of five per cent of Earth's mass. It has a diameter of 4879 kilometres. During the day Mercury can reach scorching temperatures up to 465 degrees Celsius, as it is so close to the sun, but at night temperatures can reach icy temperatures of -184 degrees Celsius. This is due to the planet spinning so slowly. Mercury has a very little atmosphere, in fact there is almost no air at all. It is the sun's solar winds that remove the atmosphere from Mercury. The very little air on Mercury is made up of hydrogen and helium. Mercury has a large molten core, craters and basins and a surface that is much like the moon.
VENUS
Venus is the second planet from the sun. The approximate distance of Venus from the Sun is 108 200 000 kilometres. It takes 225 Earth days for Venus to orbit the sun. Venus spins in the opposite direction in which Earth does. Venus is also known as Earths 'Ugly Sister' as they are similar in size, though Venus does not have any moons. Venus and Earth differ in diameter by 652 kilometres (Earth being larger). Venus has a diameter of 12 000 kilometres and consists of 81% of Earth's size. Venus' surface consists of rocky plains, mountains and many active volcanoes. Its atmosphere is mainly made up of carbon dioxide and nitrogen. Venus is extremely hot and can reach temperatures 464 degrees Celsius, which is more than ten times hotter than the Earth. Due to the extreme climate, it is proven to be impossible for there have been any life to have ever lived on Venus. Venus is surrounded by a very thick and dense cloud, making it difficult to see the surface of it. This covering of cloud traps a lot of the sun's heat, this is why Venus has the hottest average temperature out of all the planets in the solar system. Scientists believe that the inside of Venus is very similar as Earth's with a molten metallic core, a rocky mantle, and a crust on the outside. .
EARTH
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and is what we call home. Earth is the only planet known that has or has ever had life on it, which makes this planet so unique. Earth is located 150 million kilometres from the sun. Like all other planets in our Solar System Earth orbits the sun. It takes Earth 365.3 days to orbit the sun. The Earth does not orbit in a perfect circle but comes fairly close. The diameter of Earth is 12 742 kilometres. Unlike a lot of planets that take several days to rotate, Earth completes its rotation in twenty three hours and fifty six minutes. Earth is one of six planets that has a moon. Its moons name is Luna, and is similar in size as Mercury. The moon's surface consists of craters, craters and more craters! Our moon is very unique as it appears almost every night and is able to be seen without a telescope. In 1969 a scientific breakthrough was achieved as astronauts visited the moon for the first time in history. The Earth's surface is made up of approximately 30% land and 70% water. Earth consists of many landscapes such as: valleys, volcanoes, rocky plains, mountains, flat ground, fields and much more. Our atmosphere contains many gases but mainly made up of nitrogen (78%), Oxygen (21%) and Argon (1%). The remaining gas includes carbon dioxide and very small amounts of other gases. Earth's average temperature is seven degrees, though in different places the temperature can be very different to others, this is due to seasons. Watch the video below to see how seasons work, in relation to the Earth's orbit.
MARS
Mars is Earth's neighbour. Its approximate distance from the sun is 229 million kilometres (fourth from the sun). It is one of the most explored planets by astronomers due to its convenient distance from the Earth and it's similarities to Earth. Its day is much like Earths as it takes twenty four hours and thirty seven minutes. That is a difference of only forty one minutes compared to Earth! Though Mars takes a massive 686.98 days to orbit the sun. Mars is much smaller than Earth as its mass is only 10% of the Earth and has a diameter of 6794 kilometres. Mars surface consists of mountains, few craters, canyons and volcanoes in the northern hemisphere and is crater filled in the southern hemisphere. Mars has the largest volcano in the entire solar system, it is called Olympus Mons. Olympus Mons has a diameter of 600 kilometres and a height of 25 kilometres. It is believed though Mars did once have lakes, streams and possibly even an ocean. Temperatures on Mars can reach as high as -123 degrees Celsius and as hot as 36 degrees Celsius.
Jupiter
Jupiter is the largest planet in our entire solar system. Its distance from the Sun is a massive 777 million kilometres; due to its considerable distance from the sun it takes 4332.59 Earth days to complete an orbit. Though a day on Jupiter would go very fast because a day only goes for ten hours and fifty five minutes. Jupiter's diameter is a whopping 142,983 kilometres and has a mass 317 times Earth's. It is a very cold planet and can reach temperatures as low as -153 degrees Celsius. Jupiter has no solid surface. Beneath its atmosphere is a large liquid ocean of hydrogen and water. Jupiter's 'great red spot' is where an ongoing storm has been continuing for at least 300 years. This storms cyclonic winds blow across an area larger than the Earth. Jupiter has 62 moons in total, 50 official and 12 unofficial. The most known moons are Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto. These moons were discovered in 1610 by Galileo. It is possible to see these four moons at night in the sky when using a pair of binoculars.
Saturn
Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and has a difference in distance of 1429 million kilometres. Saturn is much like Jupiter but smaller, it has a mass 95 times larger than Earth. Saturn has a diameter of 120 536 kilometres. It takes Saturn 10759.2 days to orbit the Sun, though like Jupiter, Saturn only takes ten hours and thirteen minutes to complete a full rotation. Saturn is most commonly known for its rings. Saturn has several hundred rings. Its rings are approximately 273,266 kilometres wide though they are very thin. Beneath the clouds of methane and helium, like Jupiter the sky gradually turns into liquid until it becomes an ocean of liquid chemicals. Saturn is also a very cold planet and temperatures can reach as low as -184 degrees Celsius. Saturn has 53 official moons and 9 unofficial moons. Titan is Saturn's most well-known moon. Titan is the second largest moon in the Solar System with Jupiter's Ganymede being the largest. Interestingly, Titan is larger than the planet Mercury.
Uranus
Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun, its approximate distance from the Sun is 2 871 million kilometres. Uranus is a Gas Giant. It has a mass 14.6 times larger than Earth. Uranus' day is only 17.2 hours and takes 30 684 days to complete an orbit of the Sun. Uranus spins on the side which is a very unique feature of this planet. It was believed that many many years ago a large object smashed into this planet. Supposably the crash was so powerful that it caused Uranus to change its direction of planetary rotation. A more recent theory is that the tilt of Uranus' axis may have been caused by a large moon that was slowly being pulled away from Uranus by another planet long ago, (when the Solar System was created). The gravitational pull of the moon drifting away from Uranus may have caused it to tilt on its side. Much like Saturn, Uranus has a thick atmosphere made up of methane, hydrogen and helium. It is an extremely cold planet, and can reach temperatures up to -184 degrees Celsius. It is also known as the "ice giant." It is suggested that Uranus is made up of rock and ice and has a large rocky core. Due to so much planetary pressure of Uranus, scientists believe that there could be trillions of large diamonds in or on the surface. It is also believe that there could be a huge ocen on the surface of Uranus. Despite Uranus' freezing temperatures it is thought that the temperature of this ocean is extremely hot, possibly 2760 degrees Celsius. Similar to Saturn, Uranus has rings, though they do not stretch out as far as Saturn's rings. These rings are made up of black dust particles and large rocks. Uranus also has many moons (21), Uranus' main (largest) moons are Titania, Oberon, Umbriel, Ariel and Miranda.
Neptune
The final planet in the solar system is Neptune. Its approximate from the Sun is 4 496 million kilometres. A day on Neptune is equal to 16 hours and 17 minutes on Earth. It take 60 190 days to complete an orbit of the Sun. In 2011 Neptune completed its first orbit in 2011 since it was discovered in 1846. Neptune is most identical to Uranus. It is the smallest of the four gas giants in our Solar System, and has a mass 17 more times larger than the Earth. Neptune's atmosphere contains hydrogen, helium and methane. Unlike other planets, Neptune is a very windy place. No other planet in the Solar System has winds that are as strong as Neptune's. Neptune's average temperature is -184 degrees Celsius. Neptune has six rings which circle the planet. These rings are believed to be fairly new. Unlike most rings, the rings surrounding Neptune vary in thickness throughout the rings. Neptune has 13 moons which have been discovered by scientists to date. Scientists are unsure if there are any more moons because Neptune is so distant from Earth. The first moon to be discovered was Triton. Triton was discovered only 17 days after Neptune was discovered in 1846.