Earth Science Unit 9: Our Place in the Universe Lesson 8: The Outer Planets Make sure to have your study guide and a pencil and be ready to go when the timer dings!
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Students will describe the solar system as a system that includes the sun, earth and other planets, moons and other small objects explore the characteristics of each planet identify and describe the planets
Essential Questions How do the inner planets and outer planets differ?
Vocabulary No New Vocab!
Review Share what you learned last class about the inner planets!
Review The inner planets are Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars. They are dense and rocky and are known as the terrestrial planets, meaning they are all similar to Earth.
The Asteroid Belt An asteroid is a type of relatively small, rocky object that orbits the sun. Most asteroids are found in an enormous region, called the asteroid belt, that is located between the planets Mars and Jupiter. The asteroid belt is like a dividing line between the small, rocky inner planets and the much larger outer planets.
The Outer Planets Called the Gas Giants because they are large balls of gaseous elements and clouds with no solid surface. Are very large, and because of their increased distances from the sun, are much colder than the inner planets. They rotate very fast and have complex rings. They are less dense compared to the solid surfaces of the inner planets. They usually have many moons.
Quick Check! What is the division between the inner and outer planets called? A. A meteor shower B. Orion s Belt C. The Asteroid Belt D. The Great Wall
Atmosphere: Hydrogen and helium and has a composition similar to that of the sun s. Surface characteristics: Rotates so rapidly, its surface is covered in violent storms. Jupiter has a huge hurricane, the Great Red Spot, raging on its surface. The Great Red Spot is as big as two earths combined. It s been raging since at least the early 1600s, when people were first able to see Jupiter with a telescope. Temperature: Very low. However, deep inside Jupiter s atmosphere it is quite hot because of the intense atmospheric pressure. Other characteristics: Jupiter is the gas giant closest to the sun, and is the largest planet in the solar system. Astronomers have found about 60 moons orbiting Jupiter. Some are tiny, but others are like planets. One moon is larger than Mercury! Jupiter
Atmosphere: Hydrogen and helium, with clouds of ammonia. Surface characteristics: has bands of high speed winds caused by its rapid rotation. Temperature: Surface temperature dips down to a frigid 310 F. Other characteristics: Famous for the beautiful rings that orbit the planet. Saturn s rings might look solid, but they re actually made up of many small dust and ice particles. Saturn
A moon in Saturn s rings!
Quick Check! What is Jupiter s Great Red Spot? A. A pimple B. A crater C. A hurricane
Atmosphere: Mostly hydrogen and helium. Surface characteristics: Looks bluish-green. Temperature: The outer portions of Uranus s atmosphere are extremely cold Other characteristics: Its axis of rotation is tipped entirely on its side. One year on Uranus is as long as 84 earth years. Uranus
Atmosphere: Hydrogen and helium. Surface characteristics: The windiest planet. Temperature: Upper atmosphere is extremely cold. But, like the other gas giants, Neptune does produce internal heat that warms the lower atmosphere. Other characteristics: Has an enormous orbit. It has only completely circled the sun once since it was discovered in 1846! It takes nearly 165 Earth years to orbit the sun once. Neptune
What happened to Pluto!?! Pluto is a small body of rock and ice, even smaller than earth s moon! It has a stretched-out orbit that is at a steep angle to the orbits of the planets. The discovery of Eris, a Pluto-like object larger and farther from the sun than Pluto, forced astronomers to reconsider the definition of a planet. According to this new definition, a planet must orbit the sun, be nearly spherical in shape, and have cleared out debris from the vicinity of its orbit. Pluto satisfied the first two conditions, but not the third. Pluto is now called a dwarf planet.
Quick Check! Which of the following guidelines did Pluto not meet in order to keep it s name as a planet? A. a planet must orbit the sun B. be nearly spherical in shape C. have cleared out debris from the vicinity of its orbit
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Fun Science Fact! The Sun contains 99.86 percent of the Solar System's known mass, with Jupiter and Saturn making up making up most of the rest. The small inner planets which include Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars make up a very small percentage of the Solar System s mass.
Exit Ticket Homework Complete Unit 9 Lesson 8 Want to learn more?