Gill
Science
Stage 4
S
To the Solar System and
beyond
Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech)
What is the Solar System?
S 43924
Number: 43924
Title: The Solar System
This publication is copyright New South Wales Department of Education and Training (DET), however it may contain
material from other sources which is not owned by DET. We would like to acknowledge the following people and
organisations whose material has been used:
Extract from Science Syllabus Years 7-10 © Board of Studies NSW, 2003
Unit overview pp iv-vii
Various photographs, courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech
Front cover and Part covers,
The Earth pp 3, 34
The Solar System pp 3, 6, 9,
19-23, 25, 34, 39, 44-45, 4750, 57-59, 61, 66-67
The Universe p 36
Photograph of Weathering and Erosion in the Desert ©Rhonda Caddy
Photograph of a Glacial Valley ©Upgrade Business Systems
Photograph of the Crab Nebula ©Malin/Pasachoff/Caltech
Photograph of a Star ©Anglo-Australian Observatory
Photograph of Stars ©Anglo-Australian Observatory/Royal Observatory, Edinburgh
The Earth p 18
The Earth p 19
The Universe p 7
The Universe p 8
The Universe p 35
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Editor
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Julie Haeusler
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© State of New South Wales, Department of Education and Training 2005.
What is the Solar System?
There are many resources available for learning about the Solar System.
See if you can obtain some other books or CD-ROMs, so that you can
find information and photographs of objects in our Solar System.
Access some relevant sites on the planets and find more information
about planets by visiting the following website.
<http://www.cli.nsw.edu.au/Kto12>
Select Science, Stage 4 Junior Science, and follow the links to resources
for this unit, To the Solar System and beyond.
What is the task?
In the send-in exercise for this lesson, you will answer this question:
‘What is the Solar System?’.
Your answer must describe the parts of the Solar System, their positions
and how they move.
Here are some terms that you should investigate.
Solar System
Earth
Uranus
Sun
Mars
Neptune
Mercury
Jupiter
Pluto
Venus
Saturn
Moon
How should you answer?
The Solar System
17
However you decide to present the information, make sure that it answers
the question.
If you have decided to use this booklet to find an answer, continue
reading.
The Solar System
The Solar System refers to our Sun and the objects that travel through
space around it. The path of each object is called its orbit. The main
objects that orbit the Sun are the nine planets, with their moons, and the
asteroid belt. There are also comets, meteoroids and interplanetary gas
and dust.
18
To the Solar System and beyond
Notice that the orbits of the planets are squashed circles called ellipses.
The dotted band between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter represents the
asteroid belt. Asteroids are small planets, large, roundish chunks of rock
with an average diameter of about 100 km. There are thousands of
asteroids in this area of the Solar System.
The Solar System
Do you notice anything unusual about the orbit of one of the planets?
What is it?
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
Did you notice Pluto’s orbit? Sometimes it comes closer to the Sun than
Neptune.
Comparing the planets
Each of the nine planets has its own characteristics. Read about these
now.
Earth
Mass = 6 000 million million tonnes
Diameter = 12 756 km
Distance from Sun = 150 million km
Number of moons = 1
Average temperature = –14 °C
Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech
The Solar System
Day length = 23.9 h
19
Jupiter
Mass = 318 x Earth
Diameter = 142 984 km
Distance from Sun = 780 million km
Number of moons = 16
Average temperature = 150°C
Day length = 10 h
Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech
Mars
Mass = 0.11 x Earth
Diameter = 6 786 km
Distance from Sun = 228 million km
Number of moons = 2
Average temperature = – 63°C
Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech
20
Day length = 24.6 h
To the Solar System and beyond
Mercury
Mass = 0.06 x Earth
Diameter = 4 879 km
Distance from Sun = 58 million km
Number of moons = 0
Courtesy ASA/JPLCaltech
Average temperature at night = –180 °C
Average temperature by day = 400°C
Day length = 58.65 Earth days
Neptune
Mass = 17 x Earth
Diameter = 49 528 km
Distance from Sun = 4 490 million km
Number of moons = 8
Average temperature = –220°C
Day length = 19 h
Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech
The Solar System
21
Pluto
Mass = 0.01 x Earth
Diameter = 2 290 km
Distance from Sun = 5 910 million km
Number of moons = 1
Average temperature = –230°C
Day length = 6.4 Earth days
Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech
Saturn
Mass = 95 x Earth
Diameter = 120 536 km
Distance from Sun = 1 430 million km
Number of moons = 22
Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech
Average temperature = –180°C
Day length = 10 h
22
To the Solar System and beyond
Uranus
Mass = 14.5 x Earth
Diameter = 51 118 km
Distance from Sun = 2 870 million km
Number of moons = 21
Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech
Average temperature = –210°C
Day length = 18 h
Venus
Mass = 0.81 x Earth
Diameter = 12 104 km
Distance from Sun = 108 million km
Number of moons = 0
Average temperature = 480°C
Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech
Day length = 243 Earth days
The information on the planets can now be compared.
Comparing the planets
Use information about the planets to complete the tasks below.
1
Arrange the planets in order of increasing mass. (Write their names
from smallest to largest mass.)
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
The Solar System
23
2
Arrange the planets in order of increasing diameter. (Write their
names from smallest diameter to largest diameter.)
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
3
Which planet is the smallest? Explain your choice.
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
4
Which planet is the largest? Explain your choice.
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
5
Arrange the planets in order of increasing distance from the Sun.
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
6
Do all the planets rotate on an axis? How do you know?
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
7
24
Compare the characteristics of our Moon with Pluto.
To the Solar System and beyond
Moon
Mass = 0.01 x Earth
Diameter = 3 476 km
Distance from Earth = 384 500 km
Number of moons = 0
Average temperature at night = –155°C
Courtesy NASA/JPL-Caltech
Average temperature by day = 105°C
Day length = 27.3 Earth days
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
Check your answers.
Turn to the send-in pages and check that you can answer the question for
this lesson or prepare your own send-in task. Evaluate your own
progress by completing the next section.
Complete Exercise: What is the Solar System?
The Solar System
25
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To the Solar System and beyond
Additional resources
Scaled models of the major planets
Mercury
Venus
Pluto
Earth
Mars
Neptune
Saturn
Uranus
Jupiter
The Solar System
27
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To the Solar System and beyond
Suggested answers
Check your responses against these suggested answers.
Comparing the planets
1
The planets, in order of increasing mass are:
Pluto, Mercury, Mars, Venus, Earth, Uranus, Neptune, Saturn, Jupiter.
2
The planets, in order of increasing diameter are:
Pluto, Mercury, Mars, Venus, Earth, Neptune, Uranus, Saturn, Jupiter.
3
Pluto is the smallest planet because it has the smallest mass and the
smallest diameter. (There is even discussion amongst astronomers that
Pluto isn’t really a planet like the others. Instead, some scientists suggest
that it could be an escaped moon.)
4
Jupiter is the largest planet because it has the largest mass and the largest
diameter. (Saturn is sometimes called the largest planet because, if you
consider the size of its rings, it has more than twice the diameter of
Jupiter.)
5
The planets, in order of increasing distance from the Sun, are:
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto.
6
The planets must rotate because they have day length. (Day length is the
time for one rotation.)
7
The Moon and Pluto have the same mass but the Moon has more than 1.5
times Pluto’s diameter. Pluto is colder and rotates more than four times
faster than the Moon. (You know that it rotates faster because it has a
shorter day length.)
The Solar System
29
30
To the Solar System and beyond
Exercise: What is the Solar
System?
Name
____________________________
Teacher ____________________________
Your answer must describe the parts of the Solar System, their positions
and how they move.
Your answer should show that you can:
•
identify the main components of the Solar System
•
compare the sizes of objects in the Solar System
•
compare the distances between objects in the Solar System.
Attach your own send-in exercise and answer or complete the tasks on
the following page.
1
In this activity, you will make a model of the Solar System.
a
First, calculate the scaled sizes of the nine major planets. The
scale for this model is 12 756 km = 1 cm so divide each
diameter by 12 756. Round your answers to the nearest 0.1 cm.
Object
Sun
Mercury
1 392 000
Scaled diameter (cm)
1 392 000
! 109.1
12 756
4 879
Venus
12 104
Earth
12 756
Mars
6 786
Jupiter
142 984
Saturn
120 536
Uranus
51 118
Neptune
49 528
Pluto
The Solar System
Diameter (km)
2 290
31
b
Draw a circle with the scaled diameter to represent each planet.
(You do not have to include the Sun. Why not?)
You can use plain paper, or if you like, use coloured paper.
Even patterned wrapping paper could be used if you want to
represent the different textures or colours of the planets.
If you absolutely cannot calculate the scaled diameter or draw
your own circles, you can use the circles in the Additional
resources section.
c
Cut around each model planet. Arrange them in order to make a
model Solar System.
d
Use sticky tape to join together two pieces of paper into a long
paper strip.
e
Draw part of the Sun at the left-hand end of the strip. (Think
about how big to draw it before you begin.)
Glue your model planets onto the strip, in order, to make a
model Solar System. Label all the parts of your model. Keep
your model for Exercise 2.3.
32
To the Solar System and beyond