A Journey Through The Solar System

Science And Us

Me And Myself

A Journey Through The Solar SystemThe Earth in Perspective

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SUNThe Sun or Sol, is the star at the centre of our solar system andis responsible for the Earthsclimate and weather. The Sunis an almost perfect spherewith a difference of just 10km in diameter between the poles and the equator. The average radius of the Sun is 695,508 km.Star Profile:Age:4.6 Billion YearsType:Yellow Dwarf (G2V)Diameter:1,392,684 kmSurface Temperature:5500 CDistance: 93 million kmMERCURY

Mercury is the closest planet to the Sunand due to its proximity it is not easily seen except during twilight. Thirteentimes a century Mercury can be observed from theEarthpassing across the face of the Sun in an event called a transit, the next will occur on the 9th May 2016.Distance from earth: 57 million kmVENUS

A day on Venus lasts longer thana year:It takes 243 Earth days to rotate once on its axis. The planets orbit around the Sun takes 225 Earth days, compared to the Earths 365.It also differs from most other planets in our solar system by having no natural satellites. Distance from earth: 25.8 million km

Venus is the second brightest object in the night sky:Only the Moon is brighter. With a magnitude of between -3.8 to -4.6 Venus is so bright it can be seen during daytime on a clear day.

EARTH

Earth is the third planet from theSunand is the largest of theterrestrial planets. The Earth is the only planet in our solar system not to be named after a Greek or Roman deity. The Earth was formed approximately 4.54 billion years ago and is the only known planet to support life.

MARS

Mars is the fourth planet from theSun. Named after the Roman god of war, and often described as the Red Planet due to its reddish appearance. Mars is aterrestrial planetwith a thin atmosphere composed primarilyof carbon dioxide.Distance from earth: 48.6 million kmJUPITER

The planet Jupiter is the fifth planet out from theSun, and is two and a half times more massive than all the other planets in thesolar systemcombined. It is made primarily of gases and is therefore known as a gas giant.Distance from earth: 390.6 km

SATURNSaturn is the sixth planet from theSunand the most distant that can be seen with the naked eye. It is best known for its fabulousring systemthat was discovered in 1610 by the astronomer Galileo Galilei.Distance from earth : 777 million km

URANUSUranus is the seventh planet from theSun. Its not visible to the naked eye, and became the first planet discovered with the use of a telescope. Uranus is tipped over on its side with an axial tilt of 98 degrees. It is often described as rolling around the Sun on its side.Distance from earth: 1.69 billion km

NEPTUNENeptune is the eighth planet from the Sun and is the most distant planet from theSun. Thisgas giant planet may have formed much closer to the Sun in earlysolar system history before migrating to its present position.Distance from earth: 2.7 billion km

PLUTODiscovered in 1930, Pluto is the second closest dwarf planet to theSunand was at one point classified as the ninth planet. Pluto is also the second most massive dwarf planet withErisbeing the most massive.Distance from earth: 5.7 billion km

13How old is the earth?

144.54 billion years oldHow long Humans have been on earth?Only for a fraction of the lifetime of the earth...around 200,000 years oldHow big is the Universe?Astronomers have measured the age of the universe to be approximately 13.8 billion years.

If someone on a planet 65 million light years away look at the earth, what will they see..?

What will happen to the sun eventually?The sun is about 4.5 billion years old, it has used up about half of its nuclear fuel(hydrogen). As it will grow old, it will expand.

What is a Black Hole ?A black hole is a place in space where the pull of gravity is so much that even light cannot escape. It is created when a star dies. Why cant we see it ???

Heres the distance to scale, between the earth and the moon. Doesnt look too far, does it?

THINK AGAIN.Inside that distance you can fit every planet in our solar system.

That little green smudge is North America on Jupiter.

And heres the size of Earth ( well, six Earths) compared with Saturn.

This is a comet. We just landed a probe on this one. Heres it compared to Los Angeles.

The size of all planets as compared to the sun.

EARTH.. Compared to the sun..Terrifying..isnt it?

This is our galaxy, The Milky Way, and this is where we are.

The limits of our visible sky.

Our galaxy as compared to just a few average galaxies, about 350 million light years away.

Me And Myself