solar system is a group of planets revolving in certain orbits around a bright star - the Sun. This luminary is the main source of heat and light in the solar system.
It is believed that our system of planets was formed as a result of the explosion of one or more stars and this happened about 4.5 billion years ago. At first, the solar system was a collection of gas and dust particles, however, over time and under the influence of its own mass, the Sun and other planets arose.
Planets of the solar system
In the center of the solar system is the Sun, around which eight planets move in their orbits: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune.
Until 2006, Pluto also belongs to this group of planets, it was considered the 9th planet from the Sun, however, due to its considerable distance from the Sun and its small size, it was excluded from this list and called a dwarf planet. Rather, it is one of several dwarf planets in the Kuiper Belt.
All the above planets are usually divided into two large groups: terrestrial group and gas giants.
The terrestrial group includes such planets as: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars. They are distinguished by their small size and rocky surface, and in addition, they are located closer than the others to the Sun.
The gas giants include: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune. They are characterized big sizes and the presence of rings, which are ice dust and rocky pieces. These planets are made up mostly of gas.
The sun
The sun is the star around which all the planets and moons in the solar system revolve. It is made up of hydrogen and helium. The Sun is 4.5 billion years old and is only in the middle of its life cycle gradually increases in size. Now the diameter of the Sun is 1,391,400 km. In the same number of years, this star will expand and reach the orbit of the Earth.
The sun is the source of heat and light for our planet. Its activity increases or becomes weaker every 11 years.
Due to the extremely high temperatures on its surface, a detailed study of the Sun is extremely difficult, but attempts to launch a special apparatus as close as possible to the star continue.
Terrestrial group of planets
Mercury
This planet is one of the smallest in the solar system, its diameter is 4,879 km. In addition, it is closest to the Sun. This neighborhood predetermined a significant temperature difference. The average temperature on Mercury in daytime is +350 degrees Celsius, and at night - -170 degrees.
If we focus on the earth year, then Mercury makes full turn around the Sun in 88 days, and one day there lasts 59 Earth days. It was noticed that this planet can periodically change the speed of its rotation around the Sun, its distance from it and its position.
There is no atmosphere on Mercury, in connection with this, asteroids often attack it and leave behind a lot of craters on its surface. Sodium, helium, argon, hydrogen, oxygen were discovered on this planet.
A detailed study of Mercury presents great difficulties due to its close proximity to the Sun. Mercury can sometimes be seen from Earth with the naked eye.
According to one theory, it is believed that Mercury was previously a satellite of Venus, however, this assumption has not yet been proven. Mercury has no satellite.
Venus
This planet is the second from the Sun. In size, it is close to the diameter of the Earth, the diameter is 12,104 km. In all other respects, Venus is significantly different from our planet. A day here lasts 243 Earth days, and a year - 255 days. The atmosphere of Venus is 95% carbon dioxide, which creates on its surface the greenhouse effect. This leads to the fact that the average temperature on the planet is 475 degrees Celsius. The atmosphere also includes 5% nitrogen and 0.1% oxygen.
Unlike the earth, most of the surface of which is covered with water, there is no liquid on Venus, and almost the entire surface is occupied by solidified basalt lava. According to one theory, there used to be oceans on this planet, however, as a result of internal heating, they evaporated, and the vapors were carried away by the solar wind into outer space. Near the surface of Venus, weak winds blow, however, at an altitude of 50 km, their speed increases significantly and amounts to 300 meters per second.
There are many craters and hills on Venus, reminiscent of terrestrial continents. The formation of craters is associated with the fact that earlier the planet had a less dense atmosphere.
A distinctive feature of Venus is that, unlike the other planets, its movement does not occur from west to east, but from east to west. It can be seen from Earth even without the help of a telescope after sunset or before sunrise. This is due to the ability of its atmosphere to reflect light well.
Venus has no satellite.
Earth
Our planet is located at a distance of 150 million km from the Sun, and this allows us to create on its surface a temperature suitable for the existence of water in liquid form, and, therefore, for the emergence of life.
Its surface is 70% covered with water, and it is the only one of the planets that has such an amount of liquid. It is believed that many thousands of years ago, the steam contained in the atmosphere created the temperature on the Earth's surface necessary for the formation of water in liquid form, and solar radiation contributed to photosynthesis and the birth of life on the planet.
The peculiarity of our planet is that under the earth's crust there are huge tectonic plates, which, moving, collide with each other and lead to a change in the landscape.
The diameter of the Earth is 12,742 km. An Earth day lasts 23 hours 56 minutes 4 seconds, and a year - 365 days 6 hours 9 minutes 10 seconds. Its atmosphere is 77% nitrogen, 21% oxygen and a small percentage of other gases. None of the atmospheres of other planets in the solar system has such an amount of oxygen.
According to scientists, the age of the Earth is 4.5 billion years, about the same time its only satellite, the Moon, exists. It is always turned to our planet with only one side. There are many craters, mountains and plains on the surface of the Moon. It reflects very little. sunlight, so it can be seen from Earth in a pale moonlight.
Mars
This planet is the fourth in a row from the Sun and is 1.5 times more distant from it than the Earth. The diameter of Mars is smaller than Earth's and is 6,779 km. The average air temperature on the planet ranges from -155 degrees to +20 degrees at the equator. The magnetic field on Mars is much weaker than that of the Earth, and the atmosphere is quite rarefied, which allows unhindered solar radiation affect the surface. In this regard, if there is life on Mars, it is not on the surface.
When surveyed with the help of rovers, it was found that there are many mountains on Mars, as well as dried riverbeds and glaciers. The surface of the planet is covered with red sand. Iron oxide gives Mars its color.
One of the most frequent events on the planet are dust storms, which are voluminous and destructive. Geological activity on Mars could not be detected, however, it is reliably known that significant geological events took place on the planet earlier.
The atmosphere of Mars is 96% carbon dioxide, 2.7% nitrogen and 1.6% argon. Oxygen and water vapor are present in minimal quantities.
A day on Mars is similar in duration to that on Earth and is 24 hours 37 minutes 23 seconds. A year on the planet lasts twice as long as the earth - 687 days.
The planet has two moons Phobos and Deimos. They are small and uneven in shape, reminiscent of asteroids.
Sometimes Mars is also visible from Earth with the naked eye.
gas giants
Jupiter
This planet is the largest in the solar system and has a diameter of 139,822 km, which is 19 times larger than the earth. A day on Jupiter lasts 10 hours, and a year is approximately 12 Earth years. Jupiter is mainly composed of xenon, argon, and krypton. If it were 60 times larger, it could become a star due to a spontaneous thermonuclear reaction.
The average temperature on the planet is -150 degrees Celsius. The atmosphere is made up of hydrogen and helium. There is no oxygen or water on its surface. There is an assumption that there is ice in the atmosphere of Jupiter.
Jupiter has great amount satellites - 67. The largest of them are Io, Ganymede, Callisto and Europa. Ganymede is one of the most large satellites in the solar system. Its diameter is 2634 km, which is approximately the size of Mercury. In addition, a thick layer of ice is visible on its surface, under which there may be water. Callisto is considered the oldest of the satellites, since it is its surface that has the largest number craters.
Saturn
This planet is the second largest in the solar system. Its diameter is 116,464 km. It is most similar in composition to the Sun. A year on this planet lasts quite a long time, almost 30 Earth years, and a day is 10.5 hours. The average surface temperature is -180 degrees.
Its atmosphere consists mainly of hydrogen and a small amount of helium. Thunderstorms and auroras often occur in its upper layers.
Saturn is unique in that it has 65 moons and several rings. The rings are made up of small ice particles and rock formations. Ice dust perfectly reflects light, so the rings of Saturn are very clearly visible in a telescope. However, he is not the only planet to have a diadem, it is just less noticeable on other planets.
Uranus
Uranus is the third largest planet in the solar system and the seventh from the Sun. It has a diameter of 50,724 km. It is also called the "ice planet", as the temperature on its surface is -224 degrees. A day on Uranus lasts 17 hours, and a year is 84 Earth years. At the same time, summer lasts as long as winter - 42 years. Such a natural phenomenon due to the fact that the axis of that planet is located at an angle of 90 degrees to the orbit and it turns out that Uranus, as it were, "lies on its side."
Uranus has 27 moons. The most famous of them are: Oberon, Titania, Ariel, Miranda, Umbriel.
Neptune
Neptune is the eighth planet from the Sun. In its composition and size, it is similar to its neighbor Uranus. The diameter of this planet is 49,244 km. A day on Neptune lasts 16 hours, and a year is equal to 164 Earth years. Neptune belongs to the ice giants and for a long time it was believed that no weather events occur on its icy surface. However, it has recently been found that Neptune has raging eddies and wind speeds the highest of the planets in the solar system. It reaches 700 km / h.
Neptune has 14 moons, the most famous of which is Triton. It is known that it has its own atmosphere.
Neptune also has rings. This planet has 6.
Interesting facts about the planets of the solar system
Compared to Jupiter, Mercury appears to be a dot in the sky. These are actually the proportions in the solar system:
Venus is often called the Morning and Evening Star, since it is the first of the stars visible in the sky at sunset and the last to disappear from visibility at dawn.
An interesting fact about Mars is the fact that methane was found on it. Due to the rarefied atmosphere, it is constantly evaporating, which means that the planet has a constant source of this gas. Such a source can be living organisms inside the planet.
Jupiter has no seasons. The biggest mystery is the so-called "Great Red Spot". Its origin on the surface of the planet is still not fully understood. Scientists suggest that it is formed by a huge hurricane that has been rotating at a very high speed for several centuries.
An interesting fact is that Uranus, like many planets in the solar system, has its own system of rings. Due to the fact that the particles that make up them reflect light poorly, the rings could not be detected immediately after the discovery of the planet.
Neptune has a rich blue color, so it was named after ancient roman god- master of the seas. Due to its remote location, this planet was one of the last to be discovered. At the same time, its location was calculated mathematically, and over time it could be seen, and it was in the calculated place.
Light from the Sun reaches the surface of our planet in 8 minutes.
The solar system, despite its long and thorough study, is still fraught with many mysteries and mysteries that have yet to be revealed. One of the most fascinating hypotheses is the assumption of the presence of life on other planets, the search for which is actively continuing.
The solar system is a planetary system that includes the central star - the Sun - and all the natural objects of space revolving around it. It was formed by gravitational compression of a gas and dust cloud about 4.57 billion years ago. We will find out which planets are part of the solar system, how they are located in relation to the Sun and their brief description.
Brief information about the planets of the solar system
The number of planets in the solar system is 8, and they are classified in order of distance from the Sun:
- Inner planets or planets terrestrial group - Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. They consist mainly of silicates and metals.
- outer planets- Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune are the so-called gas giants. They are much more massive than the terrestrial planets. The largest planets in the solar system, Jupiter and Saturn, are composed mainly of hydrogen and helium; smaller gas giants, Uranus and Neptune, in addition to hydrogen and helium, contain methane and carbon monoxide in their atmospheres.
Rice. 1. Planets of the solar system.
The list of planets in the solar system in order from the sun is as follows: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. By listing the planets from largest to smallest, this order changes. The largest planet is Jupiter, followed by Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Earth, Venus, Mars and finally Mercury.
All planets revolve around the Sun in the same direction as the Sun's rotation (counterclockwise when viewed from the side). north pole sun).
the biggest angular velocity Mercury possesses - it manages to make a complete revolution around the Sun in just 88 Earth days. And for the most distant planet - Neptune - the period of revolution is 165 Earth years.
Most of the planets rotate around their axis in the same direction as they revolve around the Sun. The exceptions are Venus and Uranus, and Uranus rotates almost "lying on its side" (axis tilt is about 90 degrees).
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Table. The sequence of the planets in the solar system and their features.
|
Planet |
Distance from the Sun |
Period of circulation |
Rotation period |
Diameter, km. |
Number of satellites |
Density g / cu. cm. |
|
Mercury |
||||||
Terrestrial planets (inner planets)
The four planets closest to the Sun consist mainly of heavy elements, have a small number of satellites, and have no rings. They are largely composed of refractory minerals such as silicates that form their mantle and crust, and metals such as iron and nickel that form their core. Three of these planets - Venus, Earth and Mars - have an atmosphere.
- Mercury is the closest planet to the sun and smallest planet systems. The planet has no satellites.
- Venus- is close in size to the Earth and, like the Earth, has a thick silicate shell around the iron core and atmosphere (because of this, Venus is often called the "sister" of the Earth). However, the amount of water on Venus is much less than on Earth, and its atmosphere is 90 times denser. Venus has no satellites.
Venus is the hottest planet in our system, with surface temperatures exceeding 400 degrees Celsius. The most likely reason for such high temperature is the greenhouse effect due to the dense atmosphere rich in carbon dioxide.
Rice. 2. Venus is the hottest planet in the solar system
- Earth- is the largest and densest of the terrestrial planets. The question of whether life exists anywhere other than Earth remains open. Among the terrestrial planets, the Earth is unique (primarily due to the hydrosphere). Earth's atmosphere is radically different from the atmospheres of other planets - it contains free oxygen. The Earth has one natural satellite, the Moon, the only large satellite terrestrial planets of the solar system.
- Mars – smaller than Earth and Venus. It has an atmosphere composed mainly of carbon dioxide. On its surface there are volcanoes, the largest of which, Olympus, exceeds the size of all terrestrial volcanoes, reaching a height of 21.2 km.
Outer region of the solar system
The outer region of the solar system is the location of the gas giants and their satellites.
- Jupiter- has a mass of 318 times more than the earth, and 2.5 times more massive than all the other planets combined. It consists mainly of hydrogen and helium. Jupiter has 67 moons.
- Saturn- known for its extensive ring system, it is the least dense planet in the solar system (its average density less than the density of water). Saturn has 62 moons.
Rice. 3. Planet Saturn.
- Uranus- the seventh planet from the Sun is the lightest of the giant planets. What makes it unique among other planets is that it rotates "lying on its side": the inclination of its axis of rotation to the plane of the ecliptic is approximately 98 degrees. Uranus has 27 moons.
- Neptune - last planet in the solar system. Although slightly smaller than Uranus, it is more massive and therefore denser. Neptune has 14 known moons.
What have we learned?
One of the interesting topics of astronomy is the structure of the solar system. We learned what names of the planets of the solar system are, in what order they are located in relation to the Sun, what are their distinctive features And brief characteristics. This information so interesting and informative that it will be useful even for children in grade 4.
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The science
We all know from childhood that at the center of our solar system is the Sun, around which the four nearest planets of the terrestrial group, including Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. They are followed by four gas giant planets: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.
After Pluto ceased to be considered a planet in the solar system in 2006, and moved into the category of dwarf planets, the number of major planets has been reduced to 8.
Although many people know general structure, there are many myths and misconceptions regarding the solar system.
Here are 10 facts you may not have known about the solar system.
1. The hottest planet is not closest to the Sun
Many people know that Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun, whose distance is almost two times less than the distance from the Earth to the Sun. It's no surprise that many people believe that Mercury is the hottest planet.
Actually Venus is the hottest planet in the solar system- the second planet close to the Sun, where the average temperature reaches 475 degrees Celsius. This is enough to melt tin and lead. At the same time, the maximum temperature on Mercury is about 426 degrees Celsius.
But due to the absence of an atmosphere, Mercury's surface temperature can vary by hundreds of degrees, while the carbon dioxide on Venus's surface maintains a virtually constant temperature at any time of the day or night.
2. The boundary of the solar system is a thousand times farther from Pluto
We tend to think that the solar system extends to the orbit of Pluto. Today, Pluto is not even considered a major planet, but this idea has remained in the minds of many people.
Scientists have discovered many objects orbiting the Sun, which are much further than Pluto. These are the so-called trans-Neptunian or Kuiper belt objects. The Kuiper belt extends for 50-60 astronomical units (the astronomical unit or the average distance from the Earth to the Sun is 149,597,870,700 m).
3. Almost everything on planet Earth is a rare element
The earth is mainly made up of iron, oxygen, silicon, magnesium, sulfur, nickel, calcium, sodium and aluminum.
Although all of these elements have been found in different places throughout the universe, they are only trace elements that overshadow the abundance of hydrogen and helium. Thus, the Earth is mostly made up of rare elements. This does not speak of any special place on planet Earth, since the cloud from which the Earth formed contained a large number of hydrogen and helium. But since they are light gases, they were blown into space by the heat of the sun as the Earth formed.
4. The solar system has lost at least two planets
Pluto was originally considered a planet, but due to its very small size (much smaller than our moon), it was renamed dwarf planet. Astronomers also once believed that there is a planet Vulcan, which is closer to the Sun than Mercury. Its possible existence was discussed 150 years ago to explain some of the features of Mercury's orbit. However, later observations ruled out the possibility of Vulcan's existence.
Besides, latest research showed what was possible there was a fifth giant planet, similar to Jupiter, which revolved around the Sun, but was ejected from the solar system due to gravitational interaction with other planets.
5. Jupiter has the largest ocean of all the planets
Jupiter, which orbits in cold space five times further from the Sun than planet Earth, was able to hold much higher levels of hydrogen and helium during formation than our planet.
One might even say that Jupiter is mostly made up of hydrogen and helium. Given the mass of the planet and the chemical composition, as well as the laws of physics, under cold clouds, an increase in pressure should lead to the transition of hydrogen into liquid state. That is, on Jupiter there should be deepest ocean of liquid hydrogen.
According to computer models on this planet not only the most big ocean in the solar system, its depth is approximately 40,000 km, that is, it is equal to the circumference of the earth.
6. Even the smallest bodies in the solar system have satellites
It was once thought that only objects as large as planets could have natural satellites or the moon. The fact that satellites exist is sometimes even used to determine what a planet really is. It seems counterintuitive that small cosmic bodies could have enough gravity to hold a satellite. After all, Mercury and Venus don't have them, and Mars only has two tiny moons.
But in 1993 interplanetary station Galileo discovered the Dactyl satellite, just 1.6 km wide, near the asteroid Ida. Has since been found moons orbiting about 200 other minor planets, which greatly complicated the definition of "planet".
7. We live inside the sun
We usually think of the Sun as a huge hot ball of light located at a distance of 149.6 million km from the Earth. Actually the outer atmosphere of the sun extends much further than the visible surface.
Our planet orbits within its rarefied atmosphere, and we can see this when gusts of the solar wind cause the aurora to appear. In this sense, we live inside the Sun. But the solar atmosphere doesn't end on Earth. Auroras can be observed on Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and even distant Neptune. furthest area solar atmosphere- heliosphere extends at least 100 astronomical units. This is about 16 billion kilometers. But since the atmosphere is shaped like a drop due to the movement of the Sun in space, its tail can reach from tens to hundreds of billions of kilometers.
8. Saturn isn't the only planet with rings.
While Saturn's rings are by far the most beautiful and easy to observe, Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune also have rings. While the bright rings of Saturn are made up of icy particles, the very dark rings of Jupiter are mostly dust particles. They may contain minor fragments of decayed meteorites and asteroids, and possibly particles of the volcanic moon Io.
The ring system of Uranus is slightly more visible than that of Jupiter, and may have formed after the collision of small satellites. Neptune's rings are faint and dark, like those of Jupiter. The dim rings of Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune impossible to see through small telescopes from Earth, because Saturn became best known for its rings.
Contrary to popular belief, there is a body in the solar system with an atmosphere essentially similar to that of Earth. This is Saturn's moon Titan.. It is larger than our Moon and is close in size to the planet Mercury. Unlike the atmospheres of Venus and Mars, which are much thicker and thinner, respectively, than those of Earth and are composed of carbon dioxide, Titan's atmosphere is mostly nitrogen.
The Earth's atmosphere is approximately 78 percent nitrogen. The similarity with the Earth's atmosphere, and especially the presence of methane and other organic molecules, led scientists to the idea that Titan can be considered an analogue of the early Earth, or there is some kind of biological activity. For this reason, Titan is considered the best place in the solar system to search for signs of life.
> solar system
solar system- planets in order, Sun, structure, system model, satellites, space missions, asteroids, comets, dwarf planets, interesting facts.
solar system- a place in outer space in which the Sun, planets in order and many others are located space objects And celestial bodies. The solar system is the most expensive place where we live, our home.
Our Universe is a huge place where we occupy a tiny corner. But for earthlings, the solar system seems to be the most immense territory, to the far corners of which we are only beginning to approach. And she still hides a lot of mysterious and mysterious formations. So, despite centuries of study, we have only slightly opened the door to the unknown. So what is the solar system? Today we will consider this issue.
Discovery of the solar system
The actual need to look into the sky and you will see our system. But few peoples and cultures understood exactly where we exist and what place we occupy in space. For a long time, we thought that our planet is static, located in the center, and the rest of the objects rotate around it.
But still, even in ancient times, supporters of heliocentrism appeared, whose ideas would inspire Nicolaus Copernicus to create a true model, where the Sun was located in the center.
In the 17th century, Galileo, Kepler and Newton were able to prove that the planet Earth revolves around the star Sun. The discovery of gravity helped to understand that other planets follow the same laws of physics.
The revolutionary moment came with the advent of the first telescope from Galileo Galilei. In 1610, he noticed Jupiter and its satellites. This will be followed by the discovery of other planets.
In the 19th century, three important observations were made that helped to calculate the true nature of the system and its position in space. In 1839, Friedrich Bessel successfully identified an apparent shift in stellar position. This showed that there is a huge distance between the Sun and the stars.
In 1859, G. Kirchhoff and R. Bunsen used a telescope to conduct spectral analysis Sun. It turned out that it consists of the same elements as the Earth. The parallax effect is visible in the lower figure.
As a result, Angelo Secchi was able to compare the spectral signature of the Sun with the spectra of other stars. It turned out that they almost converge. Percival Lowell carefully studied the distant corners and orbital paths of the planets. He guessed that there was still an undiscovered object - Planet X. In 1930, Clyde Tombaugh noticed Pluto in his observatory.
In 1992, scientists expand the boundaries of the system by discovering a trans-Neptunian object - 1992 QB1. From this moment begins the interest in the Kuiper belt. The following are the finds of Eris and other objects from the team of Michael Brown. All of this will lead to an IAU meeting and the removal of Pluto from planetary status. Below you can study in detail the composition of the solar system, considering all the solar planets in order, the main star the Sun, the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, the Kuiper belt and the Oort Cloud. The solar system also hides the largest planet (Jupiter) and the smallest (Mercury).
Structure and composition of the solar system
Comets are lumps of snow and mud filled with frozen gas, rocks, and dust. The closer they get to the Sun, the more they heat up and throw out dust and gas, increasing their brightness.
Dwarf planets rotate around the star, but could not remove foreign objects from orbit. They are inferior in size to standard planets. The most famous representative is Pluto.
The Kuiper Belt lurks outside of Neptune's orbit, filled with icy bodies and formed into a disk. The most famous representatives are Pluto and Eris. Hundreds of ice dwarfs live on its territory. Farthest away is the Oort Cloud. Together they act as a source of incoming comets.
The solar system is just small part Milky Way. Beyond its borders is a large-scale space filled with stars. At light speed, it would take 100,000 years to fly over the entire area. Our galaxy is one of many in the universe.
At the center of the system is the main and only star - the Sun (main sequence G2). The first are 4 terrestrial planets (inner), the asteroid belt, 4 gas giants, the Kuiper belt (30-50 AU) and the spherical Oort Cloud, extending to 100,000 AU. to the interstellar medium.
The sun holds 99.86% of the total systemic mass, and gravity outweighs all forces. Most of the planets are located near the ecliptic and rotate in the same direction (counterclockwise).
Approximately 99% of the planetary mass is represented by gas giants, where Jupiter and Saturn cover more than 90%.
Informally, the system is divided into several sections. The inner one includes 4 terrestrial planets and an asteroid belt. Next comes external system with 4 giants. Separately, a zone with trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs) is distinguished. That is, you can easily find outer line, as it is marked by the large planets of the solar system.
Many planets are considered mini-systems, as they have a group of satellites. Gas giants also have rings - small bands of small particles rotating around the planet. Usually large moons arrive in the gravity block. On the lower layout, you can see a comparison of the sizes of the Sun and the planets of the system.
The sun is 98% hydrogen and helium. Earth-type planets are endowed with silicate rock, nickel and iron. Giants are composed of gases and ices (water, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide).
The bodies of the solar system distant from the star have low temperature indicators. Ice giants (Neptune and Uranus), as well as small objects beyond their orbits, are isolated from here. Their gases and ices represent volatiles, capable of condensing at a distance of 5 AU from the sun.
The origin and evolutionary process of the solar system
Our system appeared 4.568 billion years ago as a result of the gravitational collapse of a large-scale molecular cloud, represented by hydrogen, helium and a small amount of heavier elements. This mass collapsed, which led to a rapid rotation.
Most of the mass gathered in the center. The temperature mark rose. The nebula contracted, increasing acceleration. This led to flattening into a protoplanetary disk with a red-hot protostar.
Due to the high level of boiling near the star, only metals and silicates can exist in solid form. As a result, 4 terrestrial planets appeared: Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. Metals were scarce, so they were unable to increase their size.
But the giants appeared farther away, where the material was cool and allowed the volatile ice compounds to remain in a solid state. There was much more ice, so the planets dramatically increased their scale, attracting huge amounts of hydrogen and helium into the atmosphere. The remnants failed to become planets and settled in the Kuiper Belt or moved to the Oort Cloud.
For 50 million years of development, the pressure and density of hydrogen in the protostar triggered nuclear fusion. Thus the Sun was born. The wind created the heliosphere and scattered gas and dust into space.
The system is still in its original state. But the Sun develops and after 5 billion years completely transforms hydrogen into helium. The core will collapse, releasing a huge energy reserve. The star will increase 260 times and become a red giant.
This will lead to the death of Mercury and Venus. Our planet will lose life because it will heat up. As a result, the outer stellar layers will break out into space, leaving behind a white dwarf, the size of our planet. A planetary nebula will form.
inner solar system
This is the line with the first 4 planets from the star. All of them have similar parameters. This is a rocky type, represented by silicates and metals. Located closer than the giants. They are inferior in density and size, and are also deprived of huge lunar families and rings.
Silicates form the crust and mantle, while metals are part of the cores. All except Mercury have an atmospheric layer that allows the formation of weather. Impact craters and tectonic activity are visible on the surface.
Closest to the star is Mercury. It is also the smallest planet. The magnetic field reaches only 1% of that of the Earth, and the thin atmosphere leads to the fact that the planet is half hot (430°C) and freezes (-187°C).
Venus converges in size with the Earth and has a dense atmospheric layer. But the atmosphere is extremely toxic and works as a greenhouse. 96% consists of carbon dioxide, along with nitrogen and other impurities. Dense clouds are made from sulfuric acid. There are many canyons on the surface, the deepest of which reaches 6400 km.
Earth best studied because it is our home. It has a rocky surface covered with mountains and depressions. In the center is a heavy metal core. There is water vapor in the atmosphere, which smooths temperature regime. The moon revolves nearby.
Because of the appearance Mars was nicknamed the Red Planet. The color is created by the oxidation of iron materials on the top layer. It is endowed with the largest mountain in the system (Olympus), rising to 21229 m, as well as the deepest canyon - the Mariner Valley (4000 km). Much of the surface is ancient. There are ice caps at the poles. A thin atmospheric layer hints at water deposits. The core is solid, and next to the planet there are two satellites: Phobos and Deimos.
outer solar system
Gas giants are located here - large-scale planets with lunar families and rings. Despite their size, only Jupiter and Saturn can be seen without the use of telescopes.
The largest planet in the solar system is Jupiter with a rapid rotational speed (10 hours) and an orbital path of 12 years. The dense atmospheric layer is filled with hydrogen and helium. The core can reach the size of the earth. There are many satellites, faint rings, and the Great Red Spot, a powerful storm that has been unsettled for the 4th century.
Saturn- a planet that is recognized by its chic ring system (7 pieces). There are satellites in the system, and the hydrogen and helium atmosphere rotates rapidly (10.7 hours). It takes 29 years to go around the star.
In 1781 William Herschel found Uranus. A day on the giant lasts 17 hours, and it takes 84 years to orbit. It holds a huge amount of water, methane, ammonia, helium and hydrogen. All this is concentrated around the stone core. There is a lunar family and rings. Voyager 2 flew to it in 1986.
Neptune- a distant planet with water, methane, ammonium, hydrogen and helium. There are 6 rings and dozens of satellites. Voyager 2 also flew by in 1989.
Trans-Neptunian region of the solar system
Thousands of objects have already been found in the Kuiper belt, but it is believed that up to 100,000 with a diameter of more than 100 km live there. They are extremely small and located at large distances, so it is difficult to calculate the composition.
Spectrographs show an ice mixture: hydrocarbons, water ice and ammonia. Initial analysis showed a wide range of colors from neutral to bright red. This hints at the richness of the composition. A comparison of Pluto and KBO 1993 SC showed that they are extremely different in surface elements.
Water ice was found in 1996 TO66, 38628 Huya and 20000 Varuna, and crystalline ice was seen in Quaoar.
The Oort Cloud and Beyond the Solar System
This cloud is believed to extend from 2000-5000 AU. and up to 50,000 a.u. from a star. The outer edge can stretch up to 100,000-200,000 AU. The cloud is divided into two parts: outer spherical (20000-50000 AU) and inner (2000-20000 AU).
The outer one is inhabited by trillions of bodies with a diameter of a kilometer or more, as well as billions with a width of 20 km. There is no exact information about the mass, but it is believed that Halley's comet acts a typical representative. The total mass of the cloud is 3 x 10 25 km (5 lands).
If we focus on comets, then most of the cloud bodies are represented by ethane, water, carbon monoxide, methane, ammonia and hydrogen cyanide. The population of 1-2% consists of asteroids.
Bodies from the Kuiper Belt and the Oort Cloud are called Trans-Neptunian Objects (TNOs) because they are further away from Neptune's orbital path.
Exploring the solar system
The size of the solar system still seems immense, but our knowledge has expanded significantly with the sending of probes into outer space. The boom in the study of outer space began in the middle of the 20th century. Now it can be noted that all solar planets have been approached at least once by terrestrial vehicles. We have photos, videos, as well as analysis of the soil and atmosphere (for some).
The first artificial spacecraft became the Soviet Sputnik-1. He was sent into space in 1957. Spent several months in orbit collecting atmospheric and ionospheric data. In 1959, the United States joined with Explorer 6, which first took pictures of our planet.
These devices provided a huge array of information about planetary features. Luna-1 was the first to go to another object. He raced past our satellite in 1959. Mariner became a successful mission to Venus in 1964, Mariner 4 arrived at Mars in 1965, and the 10th flight in 1974 passed Mercury.
Since the 1970s the attack on the outer planets begins. Pioneer 10 flew past Jupiter in 1973, and the next mission visited Saturn in 1979. The real breakthrough was the Voyagers, which flew around big giants and their companions in the 1980s.
The Kuiper Belt is being handled by New Horizons. In 2015, the device successfully reached Pluto, sending the first close pictures and a lot of information. Now he rushes to the distant TNO.
But we yearned to land on another planet, so rovers and probes began to be sent in the 1960s. Luna 10 was the first to enter lunar orbit in 1966. In 1971, Mariner 9 settled near Mars, and Verena 9 orbited the second planet in 1975.
Galileo first swirled near Jupiter in 1995, and the famous Cassini appeared near Saturn in 2004. MESSENGER and Dawn visited Mercury and Vesta in 2011. And the latter still managed to fly around the dwarf planet Ceres in 2015.
The first spacecraft to land on the surface was Luna 2 in 1959. This was followed by landings on Venus (1966), Mars (1971), asteroid 433 Eros (2001), Titan and Tempel in 2005.
Now controlled vehicles have visited only Mars and the Moon. But the first robotic was Lunokhod 1 in 1970. Spirit (2004), Opportunity (2004) and Curiosity (2012) landed on Mars.
The 20th century was marked by the space race between America and the USSR. For the Soviets, this was the East program. The first mission came in 1961, when Yuri Gagarin was in orbit. In 1963, the first woman flew - Valentina Tereshkova.
In the United States, the Mercury project was developed, where they also planned to take people into space. The first American to go into orbit was Alan Shepard in 1961. After the end of both programs, countries focused on long-term and short-term flights.
The main goal was to land a man on the moon. The USSR was developing a capsule for 2-3 people, and the Gemini were trying to create a device for a safe lunar landing. In 1969, Apollo 11 ended up successfully landing Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the satellite. In 1972, they completed 5 more landings, and all were Americans.
The next challenge was to create space station and reusable devices. The Soviets formed the Salyut and Almaz stations. First station with a large number crew became NASA Skylab. The first settlement was soviet world, functioning in 1989-1999. It was replaced by the International Space Station in 2001.
The only reusable spacecraft was Columbia, which completed several orbital passes. 5 shuttles completed 121 missions, and retired in 2011. Due to accidents, two shuttles crashed: Challenger (1986) and Columbia (2003).
In 2004, George W. Bush announced his intention to return to the moon and conquer the Red Planet. This idea was supported by Barack Obama. As a result, now all the forces are spent on the exploration of Mars and plans to create a human colony.
All these flights and sacrifices have led to a better understanding of our system, its past and future. In the current model, there are 8 planets, 4 dwarfs and a huge number of TNOs. Let's not forget about the army of asteroids and planetosimals.
On the page you can find out not only useful information about the solar system, its structure and size, but also get detailed description and a description of all the planets in order with names, photos, videos, diagrams and an indication of the distance from the Sun. The composition and structure of the solar system will no longer be a mystery. Also use our 3D model to explore all the celestial bodies on your own.
The new words didn't fit in my head. It also happened that a textbook of natural history set before us the goal - to remember the location of the planets of the solar system, and we were already choosing means to justify it. Among the many options for solving this problem, there are several interesting and efficient ones.
Mnemonic in its purest form
The way out for modern students was invented by the ancient Greeks. No wonder the term "mnemonics" comes from a consonant Greek word, meaning in literal translation "the art of remembering." This art gave rise to a whole system of actions aimed at memorizing a large amount of information - "mnemonics".
They are very convenient to use if you just need to memorize a whole list of any names, a list of important addresses or phone numbers, or remember the sequence of objects. In the case of the planets of our system, such a technique is simply irreplaceable.
We play associations or "Ivan gave birth to a girl ..."
Each of us remembers and knows this rhyme since elementary school. This is the mnemonic counter. We are talking about that couplet, thanks to which it becomes easier for a child to remember the cases of the Russian language - “Ivan gave birth to a girl - He ordered to drag the diaper” (respectively - Nominative, Genitive, Dative, Accusative, Instrumental and Prepositional).
Is it possible to do the same with the planets of the solar system? - Undoubtedly. A mnemonic for this astronomical educational program has already been invented quite a large number. The main thing you need to know: they are all based on associative thinking. It is easier for someone to imagine an object similar in form to a memorized one, for someone it is enough to present a chain of names in the form of a kind of “cipher”. Here are just a few tips on how best to memorize their location, taking into account the distance from the central star.
Funny pictures
The sequence of removal of the planets of our star system from the Sun can be remembered through visual images. First, associate with each planet an image of an object or even a person. Then imagine these pictures one by one, in the sequence in which the planets are located inside the solar system.
- Mercury. If you have never seen pictures of this ancient greek god, try to remember the late lead singer of the Queen group - Freddie Mercury, whose last name is consonant with the name of the planet. It is unlikely, of course, that children can know who this uncle is. Then we propose to come up with simple phrases, where the first word would begin with the syllable MEP, and the second with KUR. And they must necessarily describe specific objects, which will then become a “picture” for Mercury (this method can be used as the most extreme option with each of the planets).
- Venus. Many have seen the statue of Venus de Milo. If you show it to your children, they can easily remember this "armless aunt." Plus, enlighten the next generation. You can ask them to remember some friend, classmate or relative with that name - all of a sudden there are such in the circle of friends.
- Earth. Everything is simple here. Everyone must imagine himself, an inhabitant of the Earth, whose “picture” stands between two planets located in space before and after ours.
- Mars. Advertising in this case can become not only a "trade engine", but also scientific knowledge. We think you understand that you need to introduce a popular imported chocolate in the place of the planet.
- Jupiter. Try to imagine some landmark of St. Petersburg, for example, the Bronze Horseman. Yes, even if the planet starts in Yu, but " northern capital» the locals call Peter. Such an association may not be useful for children, so invent a phrase with them.
- Saturn. Such a "handsome" no visual image no need, because everyone knows him as a planet with rings. If there are still difficulties, imagine a sports stadium with a treadmill. Moreover, such an association has already been used by the creators of one animated film on a space theme.
- Uranus. The most effective in this case will be the “picture”, in which someone is very happy about some achievement and, as it were, shouts “Hurrah!”. Agree - every child is capable of adding one letter to this exclamation.
- Neptune. Show the children the cartoon "The Little Mermaid" - let them remember Ariel's dad - the King with a mighty beard, impressive muscles and a huge trident. And it does not matter that according to the plot, His Majesty is called Triton. Neptune, after all, also had this tool in his arsenal.
And now - once again mentally imagine everything (or all) that reminds you of the planets of the solar system. Flip through these images, like pages in a photo album, from the first "picture", the closest to the Sun, to the last, whose distance from the star is the greatest.
“Look, what kind of POINTS have turned out ...”
Now - to mnemonics, which are based on the "initials" of the planets. Remembering the order of the planets in the solar system is really the easiest thing to do by the first letters. This kind of "art" is ideal for those who are not so brightly developed creative thinking, but with its associative form, everything is in order.
by the most vivid examples versification in order to fix in memory the order of the planets can serve as the following:
"The Bear Comes Out for Raspberries - The Lawyer Managed to Escape the Lowland";
"We All Know: Yulia's Mom Got on Stilts in the Morning."
You can, of course, not add up the rhyme, but simply pick up words that begin with the first letters in the names of each of the planets. Little advice: in order not to confuse Mercury and Mars, starting with the same letter, put the first syllables at the beginning of your words - ME and MA, respectively.
For example: In some places, Golden Cars were seen, Yulili As if Seeing Us.
You can come up with such proposals indefinitely - as long as your imagination is enough. In a word, try, train, remember ...
