Mercury
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The planet Mercury is the closest of the planets to the
Sun. Because this planet lies so close to the Sun, and as a result somewhat
near to Earth, it is visible to observers on Earth in the late evening or early
morning sky. Because of this, Mercury has become a part of the mythology and
legend of almost every culture throughout the history of the Earth. This planet is often called a morning star. This is because Mercury shines brightly in the early morning just before the sun rises. It has also been called an evening star for the same reason. Mercury is often visible for a brief period of time just after the Sun sets. The surface of the planet Mercury is covered with craters. These craters have been created by eons of accidental encounters with asteroids and comets. The surface of Mercury that faces the Sun can reach about 800 degrees Fahrenheit.
Sun. Because this planet lies so close to the Sun, and as a result somewhat
near to Earth, it is visible to observers on Earth in the late evening or early
morning sky. Because of this, Mercury has become a part of the mythology and
legend of almost every culture throughout the history of the Earth. This planet is often called a morning star. This is because Mercury shines brightly in the early morning just before the sun rises. It has also been called an evening star for the same reason. Mercury is often visible for a brief period of time just after the Sun sets. The surface of the planet Mercury is covered with craters. These craters have been created by eons of accidental encounters with asteroids and comets. The surface of Mercury that faces the Sun can reach about 800 degrees Fahrenheit.
Neptune
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Neptune is named after the Roman god of the sea. Neptune's atmosphere is made up of hydrogen,
helium, and methane. Like Earth's atmosphere, Neptune's has clouds and storm
systems that revolve around the planet, but with wind speeds of 300 m/sec (700
miles/hr) and clouds of frozen methane. Neptune has six rings which circle the planet. Neptune's rings have been given names: the outermost is Adams (It contains three prominent arcs now named Liberty, Equality and Fraternity), next is an unnamed ring co-orbital with Galatea, then Leverrier (whose outer extensions are called Lassell and Arago) and finally the faint but broad Galle. Neptune is the smallest of the gas giants in our solar system.
helium, and methane. Like Earth's atmosphere, Neptune's has clouds and storm
systems that revolve around the planet, but with wind speeds of 300 m/sec (700
miles/hr) and clouds of frozen methane. Neptune has six rings which circle the planet. Neptune's rings have been given names: the outermost is Adams (It contains three prominent arcs now named Liberty, Equality and Fraternity), next is an unnamed ring co-orbital with Galatea, then Leverrier (whose outer extensions are called Lassell and Arago) and finally the faint but broad Galle. Neptune is the smallest of the gas giants in our solar system.
Mars
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Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun. It is also the second nearest planet to the Earth and will probably be the first planet visited by humans. It has an orbital period equal to 687 Earth days and a rotational period equal to 24hrs 37mins and 22.6 seconds. Therefore there are 668 Martian days in a Martian Year. Mars has a very eccentric orbit that can vary from 249 million km to 207 million km. The highest known surface point on Mars is a huge volcano known as 'Olympus Mons'. It stretches 24km high above the lava plains around it and it has a base measuring 600km. Mars has an average surface temperature of about -23°C. Its atmospheric content includes 95% carbon dioxide, 3% nitrogen and 1.6% argon. Mars is not as dense or as large as Earth and has an escape velocity of 5km/sec, only enough to sustain a thin, transparent atmosphere. However, some clouds can be seen and from time to time the occasional dust storm can completely cover the Martian surface. The storms occur when wind speed increases to 50-100 meters per second as dust from the surface is lifted up and bounces along the ground, colliding with other dust particles and forcing a
cataclysmic reaction that could encompass the entire Martian globe. The
technical name for this is 'saltation'.
cataclysmic reaction that could encompass the entire Martian globe. The
technical name for this is 'saltation'.
Earth
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Earth, our home planet, is the only planet in our solar system known to harbor life. All of the things we need to survive are provided under a thin layer of atmosphere that separates us from the uninhabitable void of space. Earth is made
up of complex, interactive systems that are often unpredictable. Air, water, land, and life—including humans—combine forces to create a constantly changing world that we are striving to understand. Near the surface, an ocean of air that consists of 78 percent nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen, and 1 percent other ingredients envelops us. This atmosphere affects Earth's long-term climate and short-term local weather; shields us from nearly all harmful radiation coming from the sun; and protects us from meteors as well. Satellites have revealed that the upper atmosphere actually swells by day and contracts by night due to solar activity.
up of complex, interactive systems that are often unpredictable. Air, water, land, and life—including humans—combine forces to create a constantly changing world that we are striving to understand. Near the surface, an ocean of air that consists of 78 percent nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen, and 1 percent other ingredients envelops us. This atmosphere affects Earth's long-term climate and short-term local weather; shields us from nearly all harmful radiation coming from the sun; and protects us from meteors as well. Satellites have revealed that the upper atmosphere actually swells by day and contracts by night due to solar activity.
Saturn
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Jupiter, roughly 95 times the earth's mass. However, Saturn has the lowest density of all the planets, and is the only one less dense than water,if there were a bathtub big enough to hold it, Saturn would float on top.Although the other gas giants in the solar system — Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune — also have rings, those of Saturn are without a doubt the most extraordinary. The largest one to date spans up to 200 times the diameter of the planet. Saturn is the farthest planet from Earth visible to the naked human eye. The yellow and gold bands seen in the planet's atmosphere are the result of super-fast winds in the upper atmosphere, which can reach up to 1,100 miles per hour (1,800 kilometres per hour) around its equator, combined with heat rising from the planet's interior.Saturn spins faster than any other planet except Jupiter, completing a rotation roughly every 10-and-a-half hours. This rapid spinning causes Saturn to bulge at its equator and flatten at its poles — the planet is 8,000 miles (13,000 kilometres) wider at its equator than between the poles.
Venus
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Venus is the second planet from the Sun, and is Earth's closest neighbour in the solar system. Venus is the brightest object in the sky after the Sun and the Moon, and sometimes looks like a bright star in the morning or evening sky. The planet is a little smaller than Earth, and is similar to Earth inside. We can't see the surface of Venus from Earth, because it is covered with thick clouds. However, space missions to Venus have shown us that its surface is covered with craters, volcanoes, mountains, and big lava plains. The atmosphere of Venus is made up mainly of carbon dioxide, and thick clouds of sulfuric acid completely cover the planet. Venus is one of the brightest objects in the sky. It is always found near the Sun. It rises and sets each day, so it has the nicknames Morning and Evening Star. Scientists found that Venus rotates backwards. This means that on Venus the Sun rises in the west and sets in the east.
Jupiter
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Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system. It is approximately 143,000 kilometers (about 89,000 miles) wide at its equator. Jupiter is so large that all of the other planets in the solar system could fit inside it. More than 1,000 Earths would fit inside Jupiter. Jupiter is like a star in composition. If Jupiter had been about 80 times more massive, it would have become a star rather than a planet. Jupiter is the fifth planet from the sun.Jupiter is a giant gas planet. Its atmosphere is made up of mostly hydrogen gas and helium gas, just like the sun. The planet's surface is covered in thick red, brown, yellow and white clouds. Jupiter has a famous spot on its surface, a great red spot. It is a giant spinning storm, resembling a hurricane. At its widest point, the storm is about three-and-a-half times the diameter of Earth. Jupiter is a very windy planet. Winds range from 192 mph to more than 400 mph.
Sun
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The sun is a star, a hot ball of glowing gases at the heart of our solar system. Its influence can heat far beyond the orbits of distant Neptune and Pluto. Without the sun's extreme energy and heat, there would be no life on Earth. And though it is special to us there are billions of stars like our sun scattered across the Milky Way galaxy. The distance from earth is 149,597,900 km. Our solar system's central star, the sun, has inspired mythological stories in cultures around the world, like the ancient Egyptians, the Aztecs of Mexico, Native American tribes of North America and Canada, the Chinese and heaps more cultures of the world. Around one million Earth's could fit inside the sun. It is held together by gravitational attraction, producing strong pressure and temperature at its core. The sun has six regions, there is the core, the radiative zone, and the convective zone in the interior, the visible surface (the photosphere), the chromosphere, and the outermost region the corona.
Uranus
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Uranus, discovered in 1781 by astronomer William Herschel, was the first planet found with the aid of a telescope. As the seventh planet from the sun, Uranus takes 84 Earth years to complete one orbit. Voyager 2, the only spacecraft to visit Uranus, imaged a bland-looking sphere in 1986. When Voyager flew by, the south pole of Uranus pointed almost directly at the sun because Uranus was near its southern summer solstice, with the southern hemisphere bathed in continuous sunlight and the northern hemisphere radiating heat into the blackness of space. Uranus is one of the two ice giants of the outer solar system, the other is Neptune. Uranus' atmosphere is mostly hydrogen and helium, with a small amount of methane and traces of water and ammonia. Uranus gets its blue-green colour from methane gas in the atmosphere. Uranus was encircled by five narrow rings, which have been named Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta and Epsilon in order of increasing distance from the planet.