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The Solar System

The Solar System. Chapter 23, Section 1. The Planets: An Overview. Terrestrial Planet – any of the Earth-like planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars

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The Solar System

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  1. The Solar System Chapter 23, Section 1

  2. The Planets: An Overview • Terrestrial Planet – any of the Earth-like planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars • Jovian Planet – the Jupiter-like planets: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune; these planets have relatively low densities and are huge gas giants • Size is the most obvious difference between the terrestrial and the Jovian planets • The diameter of the largest terrestrial planet, Earth, is only ¼ the diameter of the smallest Jovian planet, Neptune; it’s mass is only 1/17 that of Neptune • Density, chemical makeup, and rate of rotation are other ways in which the two groups of planets differ • The densities of the terrestrial planets average about 5 times that of water, while the Jovian planets only average about 1.5 times that of water

  3. Planets Drawn to Scale

  4. The Interiors of the Planets • The substances that make up the planets are divided into 3 groups: gases, rocks, and ices • Gases – Hydrogen and Helium (melting point = -273oC) • Rocks – Silicate minerals and metallic iron (melting point = 700oC) • Ices – Ammonia, methane, carbon dioxide, and water (melting point = 0oC) • Terrestrial planets contain mostly rock material, while the Jovian planets contain the gases and ices.

  5. The Interiors of the Planets

  6. The Atmospheres of the Planets • A planet’s ability to retain an atmosphere depends on its mass and size • Jovian planets have thick atmospheres of hydrogen, helium, methane, and ammonia, due to their high surface gravities and the ability to hold on to the light gases • Terrestrial planets have very small atmospheres in comparison, with the atmosphere making up only a small portion of the planet’s mass

  7. The Atmospheres of the Planets

  8. Formation of the Solar System – Nebular Theory • Nebula – a cloud of dust and gas in space • These thin gaseous clouds begin to rotate and contract, and then spin faster • According to the nebular theory, the sun and planets formed from a rotating disk of dust and gases • As the speed of rotation increased, the center of the disk began to flatten out • The matter became more concentrated in the center, eventually igniting a nuclear reaction (the sun)

  9. Formation of the Solar System – Planetesimals • Planetesimals – small, irregularly shaped bodies; formed from the collision of matter in space • As the collisions continued, the planetesimals grew larger, and began exerting their own gravity • In the inner solar system, it was so hot that only the metals and silicate materials could form • In the outer solar system, it was cool enough for the planets to attract ice and gases to add to their mass

  10. Formation of the Solar System – Nebular Theory

  11. Assignment • Read Chapter 23, Section 1 (pg. 644-648) • Do Section 23.1 Assessment #1-7 (pg. 648)

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