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Handout 27-3. The Inner Planets. 1. The planets closest to the sun are called the ____________________. inner planets. 2. Name the four inner planets Mercury Venus Earth Mars. 3. The inner planets are also called ______________________ because they are like Earth .
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Handout 27-3 The Inner Planets
1 • The planets closest to the sun are called the ____________________. • inner planets
2 • Name the four inner planets • Mercury • Venus • Earth • Mars
3 • The inner planets are also called ______________________ because they are like Earth. • terrestrial planets
4 Describe the composition of the inner planets. • Made mostly of solid rock with metallic cores.
5 Bowl-shaped depressions called _______________________ formed on the surfaces of inner planets when the planets collided with other objects in space. • Impact craters
6 • Mercury, the closest planet to the sun, circles the sun every • B: 88 days
7 • Mercury rotates on its axis once every • C: 59 days
8 • Mercury’s surface features a long line of cliffs and • B: a large number of craters
9 • The absence of a dense atmosphere and Mercury’s slow rotation contribute to • D: a large daily temperature range
VENUS Phases of Venus seen from Earth
10 • How long is the orbital period of Venus, the second planet from the sun? • 225 days
11 • How often does Venus rotate? • Once every 243 days
12 • The planet that Venus most resembles in mass, size, and density is ________________________. • Earth
13 • Venus’s atmospheric pressure is about ___________ times the pressure on Earth. • 90
14 • What two factors cause the high temperatures on Venus? • It is close to the sun • High amount of carbon dioxide in its atmosphere
15 • What percentage of the atmosphere on Venus is composed of carbon dioxide? • 96%
16 • Venus appears to be very bright in the night sky because drops of _________________________ form a cloud layer that reflects sunlight. • Sulfur dioxide
17 • Why is Venus commonly referred to as the evening star or morning star? • It is usually visible from Earth only in the morning or early evening.
18 • The surface of Venus is composed of which two types of rock? • Basalt and granite
19 • 19. Magellan • B: a U.S. satellite that collected data about Venus
20 • volcano • C. a landform commonly found on Venus
21 • Maat Mons • A. the highest volcano on Venus
22 • Earth is the ________________ planet from the sun. • third (rock from the sun)
23 • The orbital period of Earth is ______________ days. • 365 1/4
24 • Earth completes one __________________ on its axis every day. • rotation
25 • How many moons does Earth have? • one
26 • Over the last ______________ years, Earth’s continents separated from a single landmass and drifted to their present. • 250 million
27 • What two factors have caused the surface of Earth to keep changing? • Weathering and erosion
28 • Why is Earth the only planet on which water exists in a liquid state? • Earth’s unique atmosphere • Distance from sun allows water to exist in the liquid state
29 • How was Earth able to maintain the moderate temperatures that were necessary to support life? • The oceans and atmosphere help Earth to have moderate temperatures.
30 • What three elements does Earth have in the proper combination necessary to support life? • Water, oxygen, and temperature
31 • Mars is the ____________________ planet from the sun. • fourth
32 • How long is Mars’s orbital period? • 687 days
33 • How often does Mars rotate on its axis? • Every 24 hours and 37 minutes
34 • Why are Mars’s seasons similar to Earth’s? • Its axis tilts at nearly the same angle as Earth’s.
35 • Mars is believed to have been geologically active because of its massive volcanoes and a system of deep ________________ on its surface. • canyons
36 • One of the many major volcanic regions on Mars is called ___________________. • Tharis Montes
37 • The largest volcano on Mars is ___________________________, which is three times the height of Mount Everest. • Olympus Mons
38 • Why do scientists think that Martian volcanoes have grown so large? • Mars does not have tectonic plates
39 • Two seismic wave-producing geological events called _______________________ indicate that volcanoes on Mars may still be active. • mars quakes