The Early Solar System
What was once a saucer-shaped, slow-spinning cloud containing gases, dust particles and rocks, is now our solar system. The sun was at the centre of the cloud (known as the Solar Nebula). The sun was a protostar, which means that it was only just starting to shine.
The Solar System Today
Our solar system has not changed much in the years that have passed. The sun is still at the centre of the solar system, however now there are celestial bodies and other objects that revolve around it. This includes planets, their moons, the asteroid belt and comets.
What is a Planet?
A planet is defined by The International Astronomical Union (cited in Wikipedia 2012) as 'a celestial body that: a) is in orbit around the Sun, b) has sufficient mass for it's self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that is assumes a hydrostatic equilibrium (nearly round) shape and c) has cleared the neighbourhood around its orbit.' Taking this definition into account, there are currently eight planets and three dwarf planets orbiting the sun. Six of the
The Planets That Make Up the Solar System
An easy way to remember the order of the planets is:
My
Very Excited Mouse Just Spat Up Nutella |
Mercury
Venus Earth Mars Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune |
Six of our eight planets have moons that orbit around each of them. Pluto, Ceres (which is the biggest object in the asteroid belt) and Eris are the three dwarf planets. Up until a few years ago, Pluto was considered a planet. That is until the IAU released a new definition for a planet (see above) and Pluto did not comply with this.
The following table shows all the basic information about all the planets that make up our solar system.
The following table shows all the basic information about all the planets that make up our solar system.
The planets are either gaseous or terrestrial. A terrestrial planet is primarily composed of rock and iron instead of gas. Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars are all terrestrial planets. A gaseous planet is primarily composed of gas as opposed to solid or liquid matter. The remainder of the planets are all gaseous, which makes them lighter in mass.
There is actually a black hole in the centre of our galaxy. This massive black hole is located in the constellation of Sagittarius. It has a mass of about 2.6 million times the mass of our sun.
There is actually a black hole in the centre of our galaxy. This massive black hole is located in the constellation of Sagittarius. It has a mass of about 2.6 million times the mass of our sun.
Uranus
Name and Associations:
Uranus was originally named 'The Georgium Sidus' (the Georgian planet) in honour of King George III of England. It was then officially named 'Uranus' in 1850 to keep with the tradition of naming planets after mythological gods.
Statistics and Discovery
Uranus was discovered in 1781 by William Herschel, while he was searching the sky through a telescope. He originally named it 'The Georgium Sidus' (the Georgian planet) in honour of King George III of England. It was then officially named 'Uranus' in 1850 to keep with the tradition of naming planets after mythological gods. It is the seventh planet from the sun and the third largest planet measuring 51, 120km in diameter. It's gravitational pull is 86% of Earth's. Uranus is a gaseous planet and it's atmosphere is composed of 83% hydrogen, 15% helium and 2% methane. It takes 84 years to orbit around the sun once and takes 17.24 hours to rotate. Uranus is the coldest planet in the solar system, averaging at about -244°C.
Interesting Facts:
Uranus is 14.5 times the size of Earth, with it's core alone being the size of our entire planet. Unlike the other planets, Uranus rotates on an angle of about 90°. There is a theory that this may have been caused by a collision with a meteoroid. As a result of it's abnormal angle, seasons last about 21 years and each pole has constant sunlight for 42 years. Life on Uranus is most likely impossible due to the extreme temperature and harsh weather conditions.
Uranus was originally named 'The Georgium Sidus' (the Georgian planet) in honour of King George III of England. It was then officially named 'Uranus' in 1850 to keep with the tradition of naming planets after mythological gods.
Statistics and Discovery
Uranus was discovered in 1781 by William Herschel, while he was searching the sky through a telescope. He originally named it 'The Georgium Sidus' (the Georgian planet) in honour of King George III of England. It was then officially named 'Uranus' in 1850 to keep with the tradition of naming planets after mythological gods. It is the seventh planet from the sun and the third largest planet measuring 51, 120km in diameter. It's gravitational pull is 86% of Earth's. Uranus is a gaseous planet and it's atmosphere is composed of 83% hydrogen, 15% helium and 2% methane. It takes 84 years to orbit around the sun once and takes 17.24 hours to rotate. Uranus is the coldest planet in the solar system, averaging at about -244°C.
Interesting Facts:
Uranus is 14.5 times the size of Earth, with it's core alone being the size of our entire planet. Unlike the other planets, Uranus rotates on an angle of about 90°. There is a theory that this may have been caused by a collision with a meteoroid. As a result of it's abnormal angle, seasons last about 21 years and each pole has constant sunlight for 42 years. Life on Uranus is most likely impossible due to the extreme temperature and harsh weather conditions.