Virtual Field Trip Questions

06/08/2011

Planet Names: Mercury- god of commerce, travel, and thievery in Roman myths. Got the name because it moves so quickly.

Venus- named after the Roman god of love and beauty because it is very pretty. Only the Sun and Moon are brighter.

Earth- only planet whose name doesnt come from the Greeks/Romans. Comes from Old English/Germanic.

Mars- Roman god of war. Planet is red

Jupiter- King of the Roman gods. Biggest planet in the solar system.

Saturn- Roman god of agriculture.

Uranus- Greek god of the heavens. Earliest supreme god.

Neptune- Roman god of the sea. The planet is blue.

Pluto- Roman god of the underworld. So far from the Sun that it is always dark.

Ceres- named after the goddess of growing plants, harvest, and motherly love

Eris- named after the goddess of discord. 1st called Xena.

Haumea- named after the Hawaiian goddess of childbirth.

Makemake- named after one of the gods in the Rapanui culture. Came from Easter Island.

Position in the Solar System: Mercury-1st ; 0.39 AU from the sun

Venus- 2nd ; 0.723 AU from the sun

Earth- 3rd ; 1 AU from the sun

Mars- 4th ; 1.524 AU from the sun

Jupiter- 5th ; 5.203 AU from the sun

Saturn- 6th ; 9.539 AU from the sun

Uranus- 7th ; 19.18 AU from the sun

Neptune- 8th ; 30.06 AU from the sun

Pluto- 9th ; 39.03 AU from the sun

Ceres- In the Asteroid Belt, after Mars

Eris- 12th; 96.7 AU from the sun

Haumea- 10th ; 43.1 AU from the sun

Makemake- 11th; 45.5 AU from the sun

Rotation on its Axis: Mercury- 58.25 Earth days

Venus- 243 Earth days

Earth- 1 Earth day

Mars- 24.62 Earth hours

Jupiter- 9.8 Earth hours

Saturn- 10.75 Earth hours

Uranus- 17 hours and 14 Earth minutes

Neptune- 16.1 Earth hours

Pluto- 6.3 Earth days

Ceres- 9 hours

Eris- 26 Earth hours

Haumea- 3.9 Earth hours

Makemake- 23 hours and 43 Earth minutes

ris- 26 Earth hours

Size: Mercury- 8th biggest; Diameter= 4878 km; Mass= 0.055

Venus- 6th biggest; Diameter= 12104 km; Mass= 0.815

Earth- 5th biggest; Diameter= 12756 km; Mass= 1

Mars- 7th biggest; Diameter= 6787 km; Mass= 0.107

Jupiter- THE BIGGEST! ; Diameter= 142800 km; Mass= 318

Saturn- 2nd biggest; Diameter= 120000 km; Mass= 95

Uranus- 3rd biggest; Diameter= 51118 km; Mass= 15

Neptune- 4th biggest; Diameter= 49528 km; Mass= 17

Pluto- 10th biggest; Diameter= 2300 km; Mass= 0.002

Ceres- 13th biggest; Diameter= 974.6 km; Mass= 0.00016

Eris- 9th biggest; Diameter= 2400-3000 km; Mass= 0.0028

Haumea- 11th biggest; Diameter= 1960x1518x996 km; Mass= 0.0007

Makemake- 12th biggest; Diameter= 1300-1900km; Mass= 0.00067

Gravity: Mercury- .38; 38 lbs

Venus- .9; 90 lbs

Earth- 1; 100 lbs

Mars- .38; 38 lbs

Jupiter- 2.64; 264 lbs

Saturn- .93; 93 lbs

Uranus- .89; 89 lbs

Neptune- 1.12; 112 lbs

Pluto- .06; 6 lbs

Ceres- .028; 2.8 lbs

Eris- .082; 8.2 lbs

Haumea- .045; 4.5 lbs

Makemake- .052; 5.2 lbs

Orbit: Mercury- 0.24 Earth years

Venus- 0.62 Earth years

Earth- 1 Earth years

Mars- 1.88 Earth years

Jupiter- 11.86 Earth years

Saturn- 29.46 Earth years

Uranus- 84.01 Earth years

Neptune- 164.8 Earth years

Pluto- 247.7 Earth years

Ceres- 4.599 Earth years

Eris- 557 Earth years

Haumea- 285.4 Earth years

Makemake- 309.88 Earth years

Atmosphere: Mercury- none

Venus- CO2, extremely thick

Earth- N2 + O2, thick

Mars- CO2, very little

Jupiter- H2+He, hard to tell b/c its a gas giant

Saturn- H2+He, 2 atmospheres, upper and lower

Uranus- H2+He, gas giant with ices

Neptune- H2+He, has storms in atmosphere

Pluto- CH4, thin and greatly distended

Ceres- None

Eris- Maybe CH4, used to have one but now its frozen

Haumea- None?

Makemake- Maybe CH4, has an atmosphere when its closer to

the sun.

Temperature: Mercury- -180 to 430 C

Venus- 465 C

Earth- -89 to 58 C

Mars- -82 to 0 C

Jupiter- -150 C

Saturn- -170 C

Uranus- -200 C

Neptune- -210 C

Pluto- -220 C

Ceres- -106 C

Eris- -230 C

Haumea- -223 C

Makemake- -240 C

Composition/Appearance: Mercury- Rocky; metallic core, intermediate rocky layer, and a thin, brittle crust. Comp= high in iron. Gray w/ craters.

Venus- Rocky; interior like Earth. Cant see surface because of clouds, but there are volcanoes, mountains, and lava plains.

Earth- Rocky. Blue and white w/ water @ surface. Divided into 4 layers 1) inner core-solid metal 2) the outer core- liquid molten core made of nickel and iron 3) the mantle- dense & mostly solid silicate rock 4) the crust: thin silicate rock material. Causes plates to move over the mantle.

Mars- Rocky. Red b/c of rust in the soil, huge dust Storms. Enormous volcanoes and valleys. Interior like Earth.

Jupiter- Gas giant. Great red spot. Simple molecule interior that is liquids under the high pressure

Saturn- Gas giant. Tons of rings. Same composition as Jupiter. Heat made on inside contributes to magnetosphere.

Uranus- Gas giant. Aquamarine b/c methane gas traps red light. Mostly made of methane gas. Heat forms winds.

Neptune- Gas giant. Great Dark Spot thought to be a hole. Interior is methane gas like Uranus.

Pluto- Made of ice and rock. Interior similar to the other icy moons.

Ceres- In the asteroid belt. Evidence says that the interior is different layers and might have a mantle/core.

Eris- Very similar to Pluto.

Haumea- Thin icy crust covering a rocky interior.

Makemake- Made of methane and ethane. Icy. Very cold.

Moons: Mercury- none

Venus- none

Earth- one

Mars- two

Jupiter- 63

Saturn- 62

Uranus- 27

Neptune- 13

Pluto- three

Ceres- none

Eris- one

Haumea- two

Makemake- none

Rings: Mercury- no

Venus- no

Earth- no

Mars- no

Jupiter- yes

Saturn- yes

Uranus- yes

Neptune- yes

Pluto- no

Ceres- no

Eris- no

Haumea- no

Makemake- no

How Would A Human Do- Mercury- no atmosphere, no water, extreme temperatures

Venus- Sulfuric acid clouds, INSANELY thick atmosphere, very hot b/c of greenhouse effect, tons of pressure.

Earth- Live happily!

Mars- You would run out of air and the pressure is too low but you could live there in a vacuum b/c of the ice water and climate.

Jupiter- You would breathe hydrogen, it would crush you, the surface would absorb you, and there is a huge storm on the surface.

Saturn- We would freeze, sink, be choked, and be crushed.

Uranus- We would sink, freeze and suffocate.

Neptune- Freeze, suffocate, and winds over 2000km/hr.

Pluto- Little gravity, minimal sunlight, extreme temps., no water, atmosphere would kill you.

Ceres- Not enough sunlight, no protective atmosphere.

Eris- Freeze, need sunlight.

Haumea- Collision threat, too cold, no sun, gravity too low, no oxygen, no water.

Makemake- freeze, methane is poisonous.

Interesting Facts: Mercury- 1) Travels around the Sun faster than any other planet. 2) The temperature is so hot that it could melt a tin pan.

Venus- 1) Most of the surface is covered in lava. 2) The brightest thing in the sky other than the moon and the sun.

Earth- 1) Earths axis is not straight, causing seasons. 2) The only planet that we know can support life.

Mars- 1) Red because of iron. 2) Some meteorites found on Earth are actually pieces of Mars.

Jupiter- 1) So large that all the other planets could fit into it. 2) Gives off 2x more heat than it gets from the Sun.

Saturn- 1) Spins so fast that it flattens out its top and bottom. 2) Surrounded by over 1000 rings.

Uranus- 1) Tilts so far on its axis that it rotates on its side. 2) Can hold 64 Earth-sized planets.

Neptune- 1) So cold that you would need a skin thicker than a polar bears to stay warm. 2) Winds over 2000 km/hr.

Pluto- 1) Smaller than one of Neptunes moons, Triton. 2) Once every 248 Earth years, it goes into Neptunes orbit.

Ceres- 1) 1/3 of all the mass in the Asteroid Belt was Ceres. 2) Has been called a planet, comet, and asteroid.

Eris- 1) 1st called Xena. 2) Most distant thing in the solar system.

Haumea- 1) Was called Santa because it was discovered on Dec. 28th. 2) 2 moons are named after the children of Haumea.

Makemake- 1) Only dwarf planet in Kuiper Belt to not have a moon. 2) One of the brightest object in the Kuiper Belt.

Comets, Asteroids, and Meteorites: Comets- Comprised of ice and dust w/ tails when they are closer to the Sun. Has a nucleus, coma, and tail. Meteorites- A meteor that goes through Earths atmosphere and hits the ground.

Asteroid- Small, rocky object that orbits Sun.

06/08/2011

06/08/2011