ELS: The Solar System

The Sun

The main component of the Solar Sytem

The Solar System

Consists of the sun and everything around the sun— such as the 8 planetary systems, sattelites, asteroids, comets, and other non-stellar (non stars) objects.

Heliocentric Model

An early form or model of the solar system wherein the sun is at the center of the solar system. Earth and the other planets orbit the sun.

Heliocentric Model

The true form of the Solar System, though it was a model most people from the ancient times did not believe in.

Heliocentric Model

This model helped us to come closer to knowing what the true formation of the Solar System is.

Geocentric Model

In the ancient Greeks' model, the moon, sun and the known planets— Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Jupiter— orbit the Earth.

Uniform Orbit

The orbit of the planets around the sun according to Heliocentrism

Erratic Orbit

The orbit of the planets in the Geocentric model

The Sun

The only one with a uniform orbit in the geocentric model

The Voyager Golden Record

A gold disc carried by each Voyager probe and inscribed with information about Earth

2

How many golden records were sent out by NASA

Voyager 2

Which of the Voyager twins launched first?

Different sounds and pictures that we can see and hear in our own planet

What the Voyager Golden Record included

28.5 gigaparsecs

Estimated diameter of the observable universe

Observable Universe

Everything we see up in the sky, is part of our observable universe depending on our capacity. Depending on the available equipment or device that we have.

Virgo Supercluster

Our local supercluster

Virgo Supercluster

Contains thousands of clusters of galaxies, including the local Group as one if its smaller members.

Local Galactic Group

Our local cluster of galaxies which includes the Milky Way and about a dozen other galaxies, most of which are rather smaller than the Milky Way.

Rene Descartes

Who proposed the Vortex Theory

Descartes' Vortex Theory

States that the Solar system was formed into bodies with nearly circular orbits because of the whirlpool-like motion of the pre-solar system. The material were in a whirlpool motion until they came together and condensed to form the planets, stars, and the sun.

Whirlpool-like motion

What motion led to the formation in f the solar system according to Descartes

Buffon's Collision Theory

Speculates that the planets were formed by a collision of two entities: the sun and the giant comet. These two entities collided leaving several debris which had formed into the planets that rotate in the same direction as they revolve around the sun.

They were residue of the collision between a large comet and the sun

According to Buffon, this is how planets were created

Jean-Jeffrey's Tidal Theory

Explained that the origin of the solar system is a result of a close encounter between the sun and a second massive star.

The substances torn out from the sun

According to Jean-Jeffrey's Tidal Theory the planets were from from —

Kant-Laplace Nebular Theory

In this theory, the solar system was formed because of a great gas cloud called the nebula. While the nebula was moving or rotating, it slowly collapsed because of its own gravitational pull and attraction. The rapid rotation lead to the collapse of the bulge at the center and this collapse lead to the formation of the solar system.

Solar Nebula Theory

An improvement of Kant and Laplace's Theory wherein there is now a step-by-step process.

1. Collapse
2.Spinning
3. Flattening
4. Condensation
5. Accretion

The Solar Nebular Theory in Order

Collapse

High temperature gas ball collapses then heats up then becomes a disk shape

Collapse

Also called as the heating, because during this step, the gas cloud had a high amount of energy and high amount of heat within which caused it to become unstable which lead to the collapse of the nebula

Spinning

- Disk spins faster and temperature decreased
- The collapse led to the formation of a disk -shaped material in the galaxy.

Flattening

Disk becomes a sphere due to rotation, because of fast rotation, some of the fog escaped.

Condensation

Some fog formed the core of the largest mass in the middle while small parts formed around the cooling process.

Condensation

Where the different parts/debris/contents came together that led to the formation of the initial components of the solar system (such as the small planets, asteroids, ect.)

Condensation

Where the planetary system's cores formed.

Accretion

Cores of smaller mass turns into planets, while most remain a high-temperature flare.

Accretion

The primary parts of the planets had gone to form via this step.

Accretion

From the cores they slowly built up to larger ones due to the clumping/condensation of several outer space materials, leading to the formation of the planets of the solar system.

Close to the sun

Where gravity has the strongest gravitational pull

Orbit

The path of an object which is influenced by the pull of gravity

gases, rocks, and ices

The three substances that make up planets

Thick atmosphere of Hydrogen

The atmosphere of Jovian Planets

Helium, Methane, and Ammonia

What the atmosphere of Jovian Planets is made out of.

Meager atmosphere at best, much thinner compared to Jovian Planets

The atmosphere of Terrestrial Planets

The Sun

A yellow dwarf star that brings light and warmth. It is a giant ball of glowing gasses.

Mercury

Closest planet to the sun

Mercury

Smallest Planet

Mercury

Characterized by being gray in color, having a rocky crust with craters, and being cold on half of the planet.

Venus

Hottest planet in the solar system

Venus

Planet that is Orange in color

Venus

Nicknamed the Evening star

Earth

Only planet with large amounts of liquid water and the only one with living things

Earth

Third planet from the sun

Mars

Fourth Planet from the Sun

Mars

The red planet

Mars

Planet with 2 moons

Mars

Characterized by volcanoes and canyons, rocks and sand, and a very thin atmosphere

Jupiter

The fifth planet from the sun

Jupiter

Largest planet in the solar system

Jupiter

A giant ball of whirling gas

Between 80 and 95

Number of Jupiter's moons

Jupiter

Characterized by two very thin rings and a giant red spot which is a storm

Saturn

The sixth planet from the sun

Saturn

Second largest planet

Saturn

Characterized by its rings made up of frozen gas, ice, and rock

Hydrogen and Helium

What is Saturn mostly made of?

Uranus

Seventh planet from the sun

Uranus

Characterized by being on its side on a 90° angle.

Uranus

Planet that is blue-green in color and has some rings

Neptune

8th planet from the sun

Neptune

Most distant major planet

Neptune

First planet located through mathematical equations

Two dark spots

Neptune has

Jovian and Terrestrial Planets

Classification of Planets by Composition

Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

Jovian Planets

Jovian Planets

Composed mostly of Hydrogen (H) and Helium (He)

Jovian Planets

These planets are formed outside the frost line where light elements condense into ice.

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars

Terrestrial Planets/Inner Planets

Terrestrial Planets

Composed mostly of dense, rocky, and metallic materials.

Terrestrial Planets

Formed within the frost line where rocks and metals condense and hydrogen compounds remain as gas.

Dwarf Planets

Celestial body that has the following characteristics:
- It is in orbit around the sun.
- Has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces
- Has not cleared the neighborhood around it
- Is not a sattelite

Eris, Pluto, Haumea, Makemake, Ceres

Dwarf Planets

1979 to 1999

Time when pluto resided in the orbit of Neptune

Auroras

Following a strong solar flare, the Earth's upper atmosphere above the magnetic poles is set aglow for several nights

Aurora Borealis

Northern Lights

Aurora Australis

Southern Lights

Asteroids

Small rocky objects that orbit the Sun that are much smaller than planets. Leftover planetissmal

Giuseppe Piazzi in 1801

Discovered the first asteroid (Ceres)

Comets

Cosmic snowballs of frozen gases, rock and dust that orbit the Sun.

Meteors and Meteorites

- Visitors of the Earth
- Interplanetary debris left from the formation of the solar system

Meteors/Meteorites

Material that is continually being ejected from the asteroid belt

Meteoroids

Object floating around in outer space. An asteroid or comet origin.

Meteors

Space object burning up in the atmosphere (a shooting star.)

Meteorites

- Space object that made impact with the surface of another place
- Remains of meteoroids when found on Earth

Meteor Showers

Swarm of meteoroids traveling in the same direction at nearly the same speed as the Earth

Comets

Lose collections of rocky material, dust, water, ice, and frozen gases (ammonia, methane and carbon dioxide)

Comets

Leftover material from the formation of the solar system.

Short period comets

Orbital period of less than 200 years

Comet Halley and Comet Enke

Examples of Short period comets

Long period comets

Takes hundreds of years to complete a single orbit around the Sun