tour of the solar system. general properties of the solar system there are two classes of planets: ...
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Tour of the Solar System Tour of the Solar System
General Properties of the Solar System• There are two classes of planets:
The Terrestrial planets are small, solid bodies (rocks or iron) in the inner part of the Solar System.
The Jovian planets are hydrogen-rich gas giants in the outer part of the Solar System.
• Each planet (except for Pluto) is in a roughly circular (elliptical) orbit in the plane of the ecliptic, moving west-to-east in the sky.
General Properties of the Solar System• There are two classes of planets:
The Terrestrial planets are small, solid bodies (rocks or iron) in the inner part of the Solar System.
The Jovian planets are hydrogen-rich gas giants in the outer part of the Solar System.
• Each planet (except for Pluto) is in a elliptical orbit in the plane of the ecliptic, moving west-to-east in the sky.
• Between Mars and Jupiter there are large numbers of small asteroids.
• Outside the orbit of Neptune is the Kuiper Belt of comets.
• Far past Pluto is the Oort Cloud of comets.
The Planets
Mercury
The Planets
NameDistance (A.U.)
Period Mass (M)
Density(water)
Temp (C)min/max
Rotation(time)
Tilt
Mercury 0.39 88 d 0.056 5.4 -170/+430 58d 7°
Mercury notes: many impact craters (looks like the Moon); very dense (mostly iron); rotation period exactly 2/3 of its orbital period (a resonanceresonance); very large day/night temperature difference; no atmosphere; no moon
The PlanetsName
Distance (A.U.)
Period Mass (M)
Density(water)
Temp (C)min/max
Rotation(time)
Tilt
Mercury 0.39 88 d 0.056 5.4 -170/+430 58d 7°
Venus 0.72 225 d 0.82 4.2 472 -243d 2°
Venus
optical
Venus notes: similar in size and mass to earth; extremely thick CO2 atmosphere; sulfuric acid clouds; hottest planet in the Solar System; little temperature variance; evidence of volcanos on surface; rotates slowly (backwards); some impact craters; no moon
The Planets
NameDistance (A.U.)
Period Mass (M)
Density(water)
Temp (C)min/max
Rotation(time)
Tilt
Mercury 0.39 88d 0.056 5.4 -170/+430 58d 7°
Venus 0.72 225 d 0.82 4.2 472 -243d 2°
Earth 1.0 365 d 1.0 5.55 -50/+50 24h 23°
Moon 0.012 3.35 -170/+130 29d 6°
Earth and Moon
Earth/Moon notes: double planet (Moon similar in size to earth); extremely different surface conditions; Moon keeps its same side to the earth at all times
Earth
Earth notes: liquid water on surface; very dense (mostly iron); atmosphere of N2 and O2 (with trace amounts of CO2); a few impact craters; small difference in day/night temperature; evidence of volcanos and tectonic activity; water vapor clouds
The Moon
Moon notes: many impact craters; less dense than Earth (mostly rock); no atmosphere; large day/night temperature difference; evidence of past lava flows (only on side facing Earth); no present volcanos or tectonic activity
The Planets
NameDistance (A.U.)
Period (yr)
Mass (M)
Density(water)
Temp (C)min/max
Rotation(time)
Tilt
Mercury 0.39 88d 0.056 5.4 -170/+430 58d 7°
Venus 0.72 225d 0.82 4.2 472 -243d 2°
Earth 1.0 365d 1.0 5.55 -50/+50 24h 23°
Moon 0.012 3.35 -170/+130 29d 6°
Mars 1.5 687d 0.11 3.3 -140/+20 24h 37m 24°
Mars
Mars notes: medium density (rocks); polar ice caps (H2O and CO2); thin CO2 atmosphere; moderate daytime/night temperature changes; some impact craters; large canyons and volcanos; evidence for old river beds; dust storms; two small moons
Mars
Mars
The Planets
NameDistance (A.U.)
Period (yr)
Mass (M)
Density(water)
Temp (C)min/max
Rotation(time)
Tilt
Mercury 0.39 88d 0.056 5.4 -170/+430 58d 7°
Venus 0.72 225d 0.82 4.2 472 -243d 2°
Earth 1.0 365d 1.0 5.55 -50/+50 24h 23°
Moon 0.012 3.35 -170/+130 29d 6°
Mars 1.5 687 d 0.11 3.3 -140/+20 24h 37m 24°
Jupiter 5.211.9 years
318 1.34 -130 9h 50m 1°
JupiterJupiter notes: gas giant (mostly H and He, with CH4 and NH3); strong winds; faint system of rings; rapid rotation (and slightly flattened); 4 large, many smaller moons; emits more energy than it receives from the Sun; contains more mass than all the other planets put together, red spot = Giant hurricane lasting 300 years 2 times the size of Earth.
Jupiter’s Rings
Jupiter’s Galilean Moons
Io: density of 3.5; many volcanos; no impact craters
Europa: density of 3.0; smooth icy surface; few impact craters
Ganymede: density of 1.9; grooved surface; many impact craters
Callisto: density of 1.8; covered with craters
Io Europa Ganymede Callisto
The Planets
NameDistance (A.U.)
Period (yr)
Mass (M)
Density(water)
Temp (C)min/max
Rotation(time)
Tilt
Mercury 0.39 88d 0.056 5.4 -170/+430 58d 7°
Venus 0.72 225d 0.82 4.2 472 -243d 2°
Earth 1.0 365d 1.0 5.55 -50/+50 24h 23°
Moon 0.012 3.35 -170/+130 29d 6°
Mars 1.5 687d 0.11 3.3 -140/+20 24h 37m 24°
Jupiter 5.211.9 years
318 1.34 -130 9h 50m 1°
Saturn 9.529.4years
95 0.69 -180 10h 39m 2°
Saturn
Saturn notes: gas giant (mostly H and He, with CH4 and NH3); strong winds; bright complex system of rings; rapid rotation (and flattened); 1 large moon (Titan) with atmosphere plus many smaller moons; density less than water (it floats)!
Saturn’s Moons
Titan: thick atmosphere of mostly CH4 and NH3; other moons are mostly icy, but show a wide variety of properties
The Planets
NameDistance (A.U.)
Period (yr)
Mass (M)
Density(water)
Temp (C)min/max
Rotation(time)
Tilt
Mercury 0.39 88d 0.056 5.4 -170/+430 58d 7°
Venus 0.72 225d 0.82 4.2 472 -243d 2°
Earth 1.0 365d 1.0 5.55 -50/+50 24h 23°
Moon 0.012 3.35 -170/+130 29d 6°
Mars 1.5 687d 0.11 3.3 -140/+20 24h 37m 24°
Jupiter 5.2 11.9y 318 1.34 -130 9h 50m 1°
Saturn 9.5 29.4y 95 0.69 -180 10h 39m 2°
Uranus 19.2 84y 14.5 1.29 -220 -17h 14m 98°
Uranus
Uranus notes: gas giant (mostly H and He, with CH4 and NH3); discovered by Herschel (with telescope) in 1781; tipped 98° from ecliptic plane; moderately complex ring system; many icy moons with odd features
Uranus’ Tilt
Miranda
Moons of Uranus include: Belinda, Rosalind, Portia, Bianca, Cressida, Juliet, Desdemona, Puck, and Miranda
The Planets
NameDistance (A.U.)
Period (yr)
Mass (M)
Density(water)
Temp (C)min/max
Rotation(time)
Tilt
Mercury 0.39 88d 0.056 5.4 -170/+430 58d 7°
Venus 0.72 225d 0.82 4.2 472 -243d 177°
Earth 1.0 365d 1.0 5.55 -50/+50 24h 23°
Moon 0.012 3.35 -170/+130 29d 6°
Mars 1.5 687d 0.11 3.3 -140/+20 24h 37m 24°
Jupiter 5.2 11.9y 318 1.34 -130 9h 50m 1°
Saturn 9.5 29.4y 95 0.69 -180 10h 39m 2°
Uranus 19.2 84y 14.5 1.29 -220 -17h 14m 98°
Neptune 30.1 165y 17.2 1.66 -216 16h 03m 29°
Neptune
Neptune notes: gas giant (mostly H and He, with CH4 and NH3); existence and position predicted mathematically in 1843 by John Couch Adams and Urbain LeVerrier; moderately complex ring system; many icy moons
NameDistance (A.U.)
Period (yr)
Mass (M)
Density(water)
Temp (C)min/max
Rotation(time)
Tilt
Mercury 0.39 88d 0.056 5.4 -170/+430 58d 7°
Venus 0.72 225d 0.82 4.2 472 -243d 2°
Earth 1.0 365d 1.0 5.55 -50/+50 24h 23°
Moon 0.012 3.35 -170/+130 29d 6°
Mars 1.5 687d 0.11 3.3 -140/+20 24h 37m 24°
Jupiter 5.2 11.9y 318 1.34 -130 9h 50m 1°
Saturn 9.5 29.4y 95 0.69 -180 10h 39m 2°
Uranus 19.2 84y 14.5 1.29 -220 -17h 14m 98°
Neptune 30.1 165y 17.2 1.66 -216 16h 03m 2°
Pluto 39.4 248y 0.002 2.0 -230 -6d 9h 122°
Pluto- the “ex-planet”
Pluto notes: double planet (with Charon); very small; discovered in 1930 by Clyde Tombaugh (if discovered today, would not be called a planet); orbit around the Sun is very elliptical, and is sometimes closer than Neptune); icy, similar to moons of outer planets
Pluto
Asteroids
Asteroid notes: most asteroids are small iron bodies; most are between Mars and Jupiter (where Bode’s Law predicts a planet); a few (called Apollo asteroids) cross the Earth’s orbit; the total mass is less than 0.0001 M
Comets
Comets notes: composition similar to dirty iceballs; many are in the Kuiper beltKuiper belt, outside the orbit of Neptune; most are in the Oort CloudOort Cloud between 20,000 and 100,000 A.U. from the Sun; the comets we see are in highly elliptical orbits
Message to outer space