Sun and Planets

Sidney Evangelista
 The Sun
• In the center of the solar system
• Just a big star that has strong enough magnetic fields to
have planets and comets, etc orbit around it.
• Mostly made of hydrogen and helium
• Without the sun there would be no life on earth
 Why do we need the sun?
• Without the sun we wouldn’t have any hot climates.
• The ocean would take over everything
• There would be no land
• No land, means no food
 The planets
• There are 8 planets (9 including Pluto)
– Mercury
– Venus
– Earth
– Mars
– Jupiter
– Saturn
– Uranus
– Neptune
 Mercury
• Largest planet
• Closest to the sun
• Similar to the moon
• The temperature can be anywhere around 90 to 700
degrees K!
 Venus
• Second planet closest to the sun
• Just a little smaller than the earth but has a similar
chemical composition
• Commonly referred to as earth’s ‘sister’ planet
• You can see Venus at night. It is the second brightest
thing in the sky
 Earth
• Only inhabitable planet (as far as we know)
• Approx. 4.57 billion years old
• The ozone layer keeps all harmful ultraviolet lights from
hurting life on earth
• Has only one moon
 Mars
• ‘The Red Planet’
• When seen from Earth it gives off a red hue
• Half the size of the earth
• Mars has 2 moons
• Many believe that life has existed on mars
– Nothing has been proven yet
 Jupiter
• Fifth planet from the sun
• Called the ‘gas giant’
• It is the largest planet in the solar system
• 2.5 times the mass of earth
• Referred to as one of the Jovian planets.
– All the planets made of gas are called the Jovian
planets
 Saturn
• Sixth planet from the sun
• Second biggest planet
• Has rings
• The temperature is extremely hot and can’t be tested on
the Earth
 Uranus
• Seventh plantet from the sun
• Mainly composed of ice and rocks
• It has numerous moons
• Has a ring system
 Neptune
• Is the eighth and farthest planet from the sun
• Similar to Uranus
• Also known as an ‘ice giant’
• Traces of methane were found giving the planet the
blue-ish color
 Pluto
• The ninth planet from the sun
• Smallest of all the planets
• Is not considered a planet now
• Made up of ice and rock
• It is about 1/5 the size of the moon’s mass