The giant planets are Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune. Planets of the Solar System: eight and one

The most important (and most massive!) member of the Solar System is the Sun itself. Therefore, it is no coincidence that the great luminary occupies a central position in the solar system. It is surrounded by numerous satellites. The most significant of them are the large planets.

The planets are spherical "celestial lands". Like the Earth and the Moon, they do not have their own light - they are illuminated exclusively by the sun's rays. Nine large planets are known, distant from the central luminary in the following order: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. Five planets - Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn - have been known to people since time immemorial due to their bright brilliance. Nicolaus Copernicus included our Earth among the planets. And the most distant planets - Uranus, Neptune and Pluto - were discovered using telescopes.

Our Earth is in third place from the Sun. Its average distance from it is 149,600,000 km. It is taken as one astronomical unit (1 AU) and serves as a standard in measuring interplanetary distances. Light travels 1 a. i.e. in 8 minutes and 19 seconds, or in 499 seconds.

The average distance of Mercury from the Sun is 0.387 AU. That is, it is 2.5 times closer to the central luminary than our Earth, and the average distance of distant Pluto is almost 40 such units. A radio signal sent from Earth towards Pluto would take almost 5.5 hours to travel. The further a planet is from the Sun, the less radiant energy it receives. Therefore, the average temperature of the planets quickly decreases with increasing distance from the radiant star.

According to their physical characteristics, the planets are clearly divided into two groups. The four closest to the Sun - Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars - are called terrestrial planets. They are relatively small, but their average density is high: about 5 times the density of water. After the Moon, the planets Venus and Mars are our closest cosmic neighbors. Far from the Sun, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune are much more massive than the terrestrial planets and are even larger in volume. In the interiors of these planets, the matter is highly compressed, however, their average density is low, and Saturn has even less than the density of water. Hence, giant planets consist of lighter (volatile) substances than terrestrial planets.

At one time, astronomers considered Pluto to be a planet like Earth. However, recent research has forced scientists to abandon this view. Frozen methane was detected on its surface using spectroscopy. This discovery indicates the similarity of Pluto with the large satellites of the giant planets. Some researchers are inclined to think that Pluto is a “runaway” satellite of Neptune.

Even Galileo, who discovered the four largest satellites of Jupiter (they are called Galilean satellites), imagined the remarkable Jupiterian family as a miniature Solar System. Today natural satellites are known from almost all the major planets (with the exception of Mercury and Venus), and their total number has increased to 137. The giant planets have especially many moon satellites.

If we had the opportunity to look at the solar system from its north pole, we would be able to observe a picture of the orderly movement of the planets. They all move around the Sun in almost circular orbits in the same direction - opposite to the clockwise rotation. This direction of movement in astronomy is usually called direct movement. But the revolution of the planets does not occur around the geometric center of the Sun, but around the general center of mass of the entire Solar System, in relation to which the Sun itself describes a complex curve. And very often this center of mass ends up outside the solar globe.

The solar system is far from being limited to the central luminary - the Sun and nine large planets with their satellites. There are no words, the major planets are the most important representatives of the Sun family. However, our great luminary still has many other “relatives”.

The German scientist Johannes Kepler spent almost his entire life searching for the harmony of planetary movements. He was the first to draw attention to the fact that between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter there is an empty space. And Kepler was right. Two centuries later, in this interval, a planet was actually discovered, only not a large one, but a small one. In terms of its diameter, it turned out to be 3.4 times smaller, and in terms of volume, 40 times smaller than our Moon. The new planet was named after the ancient Roman goddess Ceres, the patroness of agriculture.

Over time, it became clear that Ceres has thousands of celestial “sisters” and most of them move just between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. There they form a kind of belt of minor planets. Mostly these are tiny planets with a diameter of about 1 km. Second belt of minor planets recently discovered on the outskirts of our planetary system - beyond the orbit of Uranus. It is possible that the total number of these celestial bodies in the Solar System reaches several million.

But the family of the Sun is not limited to just the planets (large and small). Sometimes tailed “stars” are visible in the sky - comets. They come to us from afar and usually appear suddenly. According to scientists, on the outskirts of the solar system there is a “cloud” consisting of 100 billion potential, that is, not manifested, cometary nuclei. This is what serves as a constant source of the comets we observe.

Occasionally we are “visited” by giant comets. The bright tails of such comets stretch almost across the entire sky. Thus, the comet of September 1882 had a tail reaching a length of 900 million km! When the nucleus of this comet flew near the Sun, its tail went far beyond the orbit of Jupiter...

As we see, our Sun turned out to have a very large family. In addition to the nine large planets with their satellites, under the leadership of the great luminary there are at least 1 million small planets, about 100 billion comets, as well as countless meteor bodies: from blocks several tens of meters in size to microscopic dust grains.

The planets are located at enormous distances from each other. Even Venus, which is adjacent to the Earth, is never closer to us than 39 million km, which is 3000 times the diameter of the globe...

You can’t help but wonder: what is our solar system? A space desert with individual worlds lost in it? Emptiness? No, the solar system is not empty. An incalculable number of particles of solid matter of the most varied sizes, but mostly very small, with a mass of thousandths and millionths of a gram, are moving in interplanetary space. This meteor dust. It is formed by the evaporation and destruction of cometary nuclei. As a result of the fragmentation of colliding small planets, fragments of various sizes arise, the so-called meteoroids. Under the pressure of solar rays, the smallest particles of meteoric dust are swept to the outskirts of the solar system, and larger ones spiral towards the Sun and, before reaching it, evaporate in the vicinity of the central body. Some meteoroids fall to Earth as meteorites.

The circumsolar space is penetrated by all types of electromagnetic radiation and corpuscular flows.

Their very powerful source is the Sun itself. But on the outskirts of the Solar system, radiation emanating from the depths of our Galaxy predominates. By the way: how to establish the boundaries of the solar system? Where do they go?

It may seem to some that the boundaries of the solar domain are delineated by the orbit of Pluto. After all, there seem to be no large planets beyond Pluto. This is where it’s time to “dig in” the boundary pillars... But we must not forget that many comets go far beyond the orbit of Pluto. Aphelion- the farthest points of their orbits lie in a cloud of primordial ice cores. This hypothetical (alleged) cometary cloud is apparently 100 thousand AU away from the Sun. e., that is, 2.5 thousand times further than Pluto. So the power of the great luminary extends here too. The solar system is here too!

Obviously, the Solar System reaches those places in interstellar space where the gravitational force of the Sun is commensurate with the gravitational force of the nearest stars. The closest star to us, Alpha Centauri, is 270 thousand AU away from us. e. and its mass is approximately equal to the Sun. Consequently, the point at which the gravitational forces of the Sun and Alpha Centauri are balanced is located approximately in the middle of the distance separating them. This means that the boundaries of the solar domain are at least 135 thousand AU away from the great luminary. e., or 20 trillion kilometers!

The planets of the Jupiter group include giant fluid planets (,), which have a powerful thermal reserve in their depths. Based on the composition of the fluid shells, the planets of the Jupiter group are divided into peripheral planets with shells of mostly water composition (Uranus, Neptune) and hydrogen planets occupying an internal position in the solar system (Jupiter, Saturn), with a composition not significantly different from the solar one.

Jupiter

Jupiter is the fifth largest planet from the Sun and the largest planet in the Solar System. Jupiter looks like a golden ball, barely flattened perpendicular to the poles. This planet is 5.2 times farther from the Sun than , and spends almost 12 years on one orbital revolution. Jupiter's equatorial diameter is 142,600 km (11 times the diameter of Earth). The period of Jupiter's revolution around its axis in the equatorial region is 9 hours 50 minutes, near the poles - 9 hours 55 minutes.

Photo of Jupiter (taken by NASA's Juno spacecraft).

Thus, Jupiter, like , does not rotate like a rigid body, since its rotation speed is not the same at different latitudes. Due to its rapid rotation, this planet is strongly compressed at the poles. Jupiter's mass is equal to 318 Earth masses. The average density of its substance is close to the density of the Sun - 1.33 g/cm 3 .

Jupiter's rotation axis is almost perpendicular to the plane of its orbit (inclination 87°). Jupiter's fluid envelope consists mainly of helium (74%) and helium (26%), as well as methane (0.1%) and small amounts of ethane, acetylene, phosphene and water vapor. The atmospheric layer is about 1000 km thick.

The planet is shrouded in a layer of clouds, but all the details on the surface of Jupiter constantly change their appearance, since violent movements occur in this layer associated with the transfer of large amounts of energy. Jupiter consists of crystals and drops of ammonia.

The most revealing feature of the planet is the Great Red Spot, which has been observed for more than 300 years. This is a huge oval formation, measuring about 35,000 x 14,000 km, located between the southern tropical and southern temperate zones. Its color is red, but undergoes changes. Probably, the Great Red Spot is supported by convective cells, through which its substance and internal heat are carried from the depths to the visible surface of Jupiter.

In 1956, radio emission from Jupiter was discovered at a wavelength of 3 cm, which corresponds to thermal radiation with a temperature of 145 K. According to measurements in the infrared range of the outer clouds of Jupiter, it was 130 K. It has already been reliably established that Jupiter emits heat, the amount of which is more than twice that thermal energy it receives from the Sun. Perhaps heat is released due to the fact that the giant planet is constantly shrinking (1 mm per year).

In the center of the planet is a huge iron-stone core that generates a powerful magnetic field. The planet’s magnetic field turned out to be complex and consists of two fields: a dipole (similar to Earth’s), extending up to 1,500,000 km from Jupiter, and a non-dipole, occupying another part of the magnetosphere. The surface magnetic field strength is 20 times greater than on Earth. In addition, Jupiter is also a source of radio bursts (sharp jumps in radiation power) at wavelengths from 4 to 85 m; they occur with a period from a fraction of a second to several minutes or even hours. Long bursts include a whole series of disturbances consisting of peculiar noise storms and thunderstorms. According to modern hypotheses, these bursts are explained by plasma oscillations in the planet’s ionosphere.

Jupiter has 15 satellites. The first 4 satellites were discovered by Galileo (Io, Europa, Ganymede, Callisto). They, as well as the inner, closest satellite Amalthea, move almost in the plane of the planet’s equator. In size, Io and Europa can be compared with the Moon, and Ganymede and Callisto are larger than Mercury, but are significantly inferior to it in mass.

The outer satellites rotate around the planet along highly elongated orbits with large inclination angles to the equator (up to 30°). These are small bodies (from 10 to 120 km), obviously of irregular shape. Jupiter's four outer satellites orbit the planet in the opposite direction. In the equatorial region, Jupiter is surrounded by a system of rings. The rings are located at a distance of 50,000 km from the surface of the planet, the width of the rings is about 1000 km.

Saturn

Saturn is the second largest, but rather light (with an average density of 0.69 g/cm3) planet in the Solar System. The low density is explained by the fact that giant planets consist predominantly of hydrogen and helium. At the same time, in the depths of Saturn the pressure does not reach such high values ​​as on Jupiter, so the density of matter there is less. Like Jupiter, it rotates very quickly on its axis (with an orbital period of about 10 hours) and is therefore noticeably oblate.

Spectroscopic studies have made it possible to find some molecules in the atmosphere of Saturn. The planet's interior contains powerful thermal energy, which it emits (2.5 times more than it receives from the Sun). The surface temperature of clouds on Saturn is close to the melting point of methane (-184 ° C), the solid particles of which are most likely contained in the cloud layer of the planet.

Saturn is surrounded by rings (about 3 km thick), which are clearly visible through a telescope in the form of “ears” on both sides of the planet’s disk. They were noticed back in 1610 by Galileo. The plane of the rings practically coincides with the plane of the planet's equator and has a constant inclination to the orbital plane of approximately 27°.

The rings of Saturn are one of the most amazing and interesting formations in the solar system. A flat system of rings encircles the planet around the equator and does not touch the surface anywhere. The rings are divided into three main concentric zones, delimited by narrow gaps: the outer ring A (with a diameter of about 275 thousand km), the middle B (the brightest) and the inner ring C, which is relatively transparent. The barely visible parts of the inner ring closest to the planet are designated by the symbol D. The existence of another, almost transparent outer ring has also been discovered. The rings rotate around Saturn and the speed of movement of their inner layers is greater than the outer ones.

The rings of Saturn are a flat system of many small satellites of the planet. Saturn has 17 known satellites. The largest satellite is Titan, which is also one of the largest satellites in the solar system in terms of size and mass. The Janus satellite is the closest to Saturn, located almost close to the planet. One of the satellites, Phoebe, moves in orbit with a fairly large eccentricity in the opposite direction.

Uranus

Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun, with a diameter (with a radius of 25,650 km) almost four times larger than the Earth. Uranus is very distant from the Sun and is relatively dimly illuminated. The average density of Uranus (1.58 g/cm3) is slightly greater than the density of Saturn and Jupiter, although the matter in the depths of these giants is much more compressed than on Uranus. According to spectroscopic observations, hydrogen and a small amount of methane were found in the composition of the atmosphere of Uranus; there is also, according to indirect evidence, a relatively large amount of helium. Like other giant planets, Uranus has this composition, probably almost all the way to the center.

Uranus is still poorly studied, as it is extremely difficult to examine due to its small angular dimensions in the field of view of a telescope. For the same reason, it is impossible to study the patterns of rotation of the planet. It is obvious that Uranus (unlike other planets) rotates around its axis, as if lying on its side. This tilt of the equator creates unusual lighting conditions: at the poles in a certain season, the sun's rays fall almost vertically, and the polar day and night cover (alternately) the entire surface of the planet, except for a narrow strip along the equator.

Since Uranus completes its orbit around the Sun in 84 years, the polar day at its poles lasts 42 years, then gives way to a polar night of the same duration. Only in the equatorial belt of Uranus the Sun regularly rises and sets with a periodicity equal to the axial rotation of the planet. Even in those areas where the Sun is at its zenith, the temperature on the visible surface of the clouds is about -215 ° C. Under such temperature conditions, some gases freeze.

The iron-stony core of Uranus is larger in size (about 8000 km) compared to the terrestrial planets. The generated magnetic field of Uranus is also greater than that of Earth.

An unusual feature of Uranus is its system of rings, the distance of which from the planet ranges from 1.6 to 1.85 Uranus radii. Narrow rings that look like “thread-like” formations, consisting of many individual opaque and, apparently, very dark particles. In the region of the rings there is a whole system of radiation belts filled with high-energy particles, which are similar to the earth's radiation belts, but are distinguished by high levels of radiation.

Uranus has 6 satellites rotating in orbits whose planes practically coincide with each other. The entire system as a whole is distinguished by an extraordinary tilt - its plane is almost perpendicular to the average plane of all planetary orbits.

Neptune

Neptune is the eighth planet in the solar system and a close analogue of Uranus, but has a slightly larger mass and a slightly smaller radius. The average distance of Neptune from the Sun is 4500000000 km, its orbital period is 164 years and 288 days. Neptune's equatorial diameter is 50,200 km; average density - 2.30 g/cm3.

The characteristics of Neptune are typical of giant planets, which consist mainly of hydrogen and helium with an admixture of other chemical compounds. Neptune has a heavy core containing silicates and other terrestrial elements. The fluid (mostly water) shell of the atmosphere consists of hydrogen, helium and methane.

Neptune has a strong magnetic field, the axis of which, like that of Uranus, is inclined by about 50° to the axis of rotation and is offset from the center of the planet by about 10,000 km. Unlike the calm, freezing surface of Uranus, strong winds dominate on the surface of Neptune, causing storms from powerful jets of gases that rise from the bowels of the planet. Features on Neptune's surface are very difficult to discern.

Neptune has only two satellites. The first - Triton - is larger in size and mass than the Moon, and has the opposite direction of orbital motion. The second satellite, Nereid, unlike the first, is very small and has a highly elongated orbit. The distance from the satellite to the planet varies from 1,500,000 to 9,600,000 km. The direction of orbital motion is direct.

It is very difficult to study Pluto due to its considerable distance from the Sun and low illumination. The diameter of Pluto is approximately 3 thousand km. The surface of Pluto, heated by the Sun to -220 ° C, even in the coldest midday areas is apparently covered with snow from frozen methane.

The planet's atmosphere is rarefied and consists of methane gas with a possible admixture of inert gases. The brightness of Pluto varies with a rotation period of 6 days 9 hours. Relatively recently it became clear that this same periodicity corresponds to the orbital motion of Pluto’s satellite, Charon. The satellite is relatively bright, but is located so close to the planet that its images in photographs merge with the image of Pluto and it looks like the “hump” of the planet. Charon, like Pluto, is an accumulation of cometary matter, that is, a mixture of ice and dust.

It was possible to calculate the mass of the Pluto-Charon system: 1.7% of the mass of the Earth. Almost all of it is concentrated in Pluto, because the diameter of the satellite, judging by its brightness, is small compared to the diameter of the planet. The average density of Pluto is approximately 0.7-1.12 g/cm 3 . Such a low density means that Pluto consists predominantly of light chemical elements and compounds, that is, its composition is similar to that of the giant planets and their satellites.

If you are interested in seeing the photo, what do all the planets look like solar system, the material in this article is just for you. Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune in the photo look extremely diverse and this is not surprising, because each planet is a perfect and unique “organism” in the universe.

So, see below for a brief description of the planets, as well as photos.

What Mercury looks like in the photo

Mercury

Venus is more similar in size and emitted brightness to Earth. Observing it is extremely difficult due to the densely enveloping clouds. The surface is a rocky, hot desert.

Characteristics of the planet Venus:

Diameter at the equator: 12104 km.

Average surface temperature: 480 degrees.

Orbit around the Sun: 224.7 days.

Rotation period (rotation around an axis): 243 days.

Atmosphere: dense, mostly carbon dioxide.

Number of satellites: no.

The main satellites of the planet: none.

What does the Earth look like in the photo?

Earth

Mars is the 4th planet from the sun. For some time, due to its similarities to Earth, it was assumed that life existed on Mars. But the spacecraft launched onto the surface of the planet did not detect any signs of life.

Characteristics of the planet Mars:

Diameter of the planet at the equator: 6794 km.

Average surface temperature: -23 degrees.

Orbit around the Sun: 687 days.

Rotation period (rotation around an axis): 24 hours 37 minutes.

The planet's atmosphere: thin, mostly carbon dioxide.

Number of satellites: 2 pcs.

The main satellites in order: Phobos, Deimos.

What Jupiter looks like in the photo

Jupiter

Planets: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune are composed of hydrogen and other gases. Jupiter is 10 times larger than Earth in diameter, 1300 times in volume and 300 times in mass.

Characteristics of the planet Jupiter:

Diameter of the planet at the equator: 143884 km.

Average surface temperature of the planet: -150 degrees (average).

Orbit around the Sun: 11 years 314 days.

Rotation period (rotation around an axis): 9 hours 55 minutes.

Number of satellites: 16 (+ rings).

The main satellites of the planets in order: Io, Europa, Ganymede, Callisto.

What Saturn looks like in the photo

Saturn

Saturn is considered the second largest planet in the solar system. A system of rings formed of ice, rocks and dust rotates around the planet. Among all the rings, there are 3 main rings with a thickness of about 30 meters and an outer diameter of 270 thousand km.

Characteristics of the planet Saturn:

Diameter of the planet at the equator: 120536 km.

Average surface temperature: -180 degrees.

Orbit around the Sun: 29 years 168 days.

Rotation period (rotation around an axis): 10 hours 14 minutes.

Atmosphere: Mainly hydrogen and helium.

Number of satellites: 18 (+ rings).

Main satellites: Titan.

What does Uranus look like in the photo?

UranusNeptune

Currently, Neptune is considered the last planet of the solar system. Pluto has been removed from the list of planets since 2006. In 1989, unique photographs of the blue surface of Neptune were obtained.

Characteristics of the planet Neptune:

Diameter at the equator: 50538 km.

Average surface temperature: -220 degrees.

Orbit around the Sun: 164 years 292 days.

Rotation period (rotation around an axis): 16 hours 7 minutes.

Atmosphere: Mainly hydrogen and helium.

Number of satellites: 8.

Main satellites: Triton.

We hope you saw what the planets look like: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and found out
how great they all are. Their view even from space is simply mesmerizing.

Also see "Planets of the solar system in order (in pictures)"

Planets of the Solar System

According to the official position of the International Astronomical Union (IAU), the organization that assigns names to astronomical objects, there are only 8 planets.

Pluto was removed from the planet category in 2006. because There are objects in the Kuiper Belt that are larger/equal in size to Pluto. Therefore, even if we take it as a full-fledged celestial body, then it is necessary to add Eris to this category, which has almost the same size as Pluto.

By MAC definition, there are 8 known planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.

All planets are divided into two categories depending on their physical characteristics: terrestrial planets and gas giants.

Schematic representation of the location of the planets

Terrestrial planets

Mercury

The smallest planet in the solar system has a radius of only 2440 km. The period of revolution around the Sun, equated to an earthly year for ease of understanding, is 88 days, while Mercury manages to rotate around its own axis only one and a half times. Thus, his day lasts approximately 59 Earth days. For a long time it was believed that this planet always turned the same side to the Sun, since periods of its visibility from Earth were repeated with a frequency approximately equal to four Mercury days. This misconception was dispelled with the advent of the ability to use radar research and conduct continuous observations using space stations. The orbit of Mercury is one of the most unstable; not only the speed of movement and its distance from the Sun change, but also the position itself. Anyone interested can observe this effect.

Mercury in color, image from the MESSENGER spacecraft

Its proximity to the Sun is the reason why Mercury is subject to the largest temperature changes among the planets in our system. The average daytime temperature is about 350 degrees Celsius, and the nighttime temperature is -170 °C. Sodium, oxygen, helium, potassium, hydrogen and argon were detected in the atmosphere. There is a theory that it was previously a satellite of Venus, but so far this remains unproven. It does not have its own satellites.

Venus

The second planet from the Sun, the atmosphere is almost entirely composed of carbon dioxide. It is often called the Morning Star and the Evening Star, because it is the first of the stars to become visible after sunset, just as before dawn it continues to be visible even when all the other stars have disappeared from view. The percentage of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is 96%, there is relatively little nitrogen in it - almost 4%, and water vapor and oxygen are present in very small quantities.

Venus in the UV spectrum

Such an atmosphere creates a greenhouse effect; the temperature on the surface is even higher than that of Mercury and reaches 475 °C. Considered the slowest, a Venusian day lasts 243 Earth days, which is almost equal to a year on Venus - 225 Earth days. Many call it Earth's sister because of its mass and radius, the values ​​of which are very close to those of Earth. The radius of Venus is 6052 km (0.85% of Earth's). Like Mercury, there are no satellites.

The third planet from the Sun and the only one in our system where there is liquid water on the surface, without which life on the planet could not have developed. At least life as we know it. The radius of the Earth is 6371 km and, unlike the rest of the celestial bodies of our system, more than 70% of its surface is covered with water. The rest of the space is occupied by continents. Another feature of the Earth is the tectonic plates hidden under the planet's mantle. At the same time, they are able to move, albeit at a very low speed, which over time causes changes in the landscape. The speed of the planet moving along it is 29-30 km/sec.

Our planet from space

One revolution around its axis takes almost 24 hours, and a complete passage through the orbit lasts 365 days, which is much longer in comparison with its closest neighboring planets. The Earth's day and year are also accepted as a standard, but this is done only for the convenience of perceiving time periods on other planets. The Earth has one natural satellite - the Moon.

Mars

The fourth planet from the Sun, known for its thin atmosphere. Since 1960, Mars has been actively explored by scientists from several countries, including the USSR and the USA. Not all exploration programs have been successful, but water found at some sites suggests that primitive life exists on Mars, or existed in the past.

The brightness of this planet allows it to be seen from Earth without any instruments. Moreover, once every 15-17 years, during the Confrontation, it becomes the brightest object in the sky, eclipsing even Jupiter and Venus.

The radius is almost half that of Earth and is 3390 km, but the year is much longer - 687 days. He has 2 satellites - Phobos and Deimos .

Visual model of the solar system

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• Sun

  The Sun is a star that is a hot ball of hot gases at the center of our Solar System. Its influence extends far beyond the orbits of Neptune and Pluto. Without the Sun and its intense energy and heat, there would be no life on Earth. There are billions of stars like our Sun scattered throughout the Milky Way galaxy.

• Mercury

  Sun-scorched Mercury is only slightly larger than Earth's satellite the Moon. Like the Moon, Mercury is practically devoid of an atmosphere and cannot smooth out the traces of impact from falling meteorites, so it, like the Moon, is covered with craters. The day side of Mercury gets very hot from the Sun, while on the night side the temperature drops hundreds of degrees below zero. There is ice in the craters of Mercury, which are located at the poles. Mercury completes one revolution around the Sun every 88 days.

• Venus

  Venus is a world of monstrous heat (even more than on Mercury) and volcanic activity. Similar in structure and size to Earth, Venus is covered by a thick and toxic atmosphere that creates a strong greenhouse effect. This scorched world is hot enough to melt lead. Radar images through the powerful atmosphere revealed volcanoes and deformed mountains. Venus rotates in the opposite direction from the rotation of most planets.

• Earth is an ocean planet. Our home, with its abundance of water and life, makes it unique in our solar system. Other planets, including several moons, also have ice deposits, atmospheres, seasons and even weather, but only on Earth did all these components come together in a way that made life possible.

• Mars

  Although details of the surface of Mars are difficult to see from Earth, observations through a telescope indicate that Mars has seasons and white spots at the poles. For decades, people believed that the bright and dark areas on Mars were patches of vegetation, that Mars might be a suitable place for life, and that water existed in the polar ice caps. When the Mariner 4 spacecraft arrived at Mars in 1965, many scientists were shocked to see photographs of the murky, cratered planet. Mars turned out to be a dead planet. More recent missions, however, have revealed that Mars holds many mysteries that remain to be solved.

• Jupiter

  Jupiter is the most massive planet in our solar system, with four large moons and many small moons. Jupiter forms a kind of miniature solar system. To become a full-fledged star, Jupiter needed to become 80 times more massive.

• Saturn

  Saturn is the farthest of the five planets known before the invention of the telescope. Like Jupiter, Saturn is composed primarily of hydrogen and helium. Its volume is 755 times greater than that of the Earth. Winds in its atmosphere reach speeds of 500 meters per second. These fast winds, combined with heat rising from the planet's interior, cause the yellow and golden streaks we see in the atmosphere.

• Uranus

  The first planet found using a telescope, Uranus was discovered in 1781 by astronomer William Herschel. The seventh planet is so far from the Sun that one revolution around the Sun takes 84 years.

• Neptune

  Distant Neptune rotates almost 4.5 billion kilometers from the Sun. It takes him 165 years to complete one revolution around the Sun. It is invisible to the naked eye due to its vast distance from Earth. Interestingly, its unusual elliptical orbit intersects with the orbit of the dwarf planet Pluto, which is why Pluto is inside the orbit of Neptune for about 20 years out of 248 during which it makes one revolution around the Sun.

• Pluto

  Tiny, cold and incredibly distant, Pluto was discovered in 1930 and was long considered the ninth planet. But after discoveries of Pluto-like worlds that were even further away, Pluto was reclassified as a dwarf planet in 2006.

Planets are giants

There are four gas giants located beyond the orbit of Mars: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune. They are located in the outer solar system. They are distinguished by their massiveness and gas composition.

Planets of the solar system, not to scale

Jupiter

The fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet in our system. Its radius is 69912 km, it is 19 times larger than the Earth and only 10 times smaller than the Sun. The year on Jupiter is not the longest in the solar system, lasting 4333 Earth days (less than 12 years). His own day has a duration of about 10 Earth hours. The exact composition of the planet's surface has not yet been determined, but it is known that krypton, argon and xenon are present on Jupiter in much larger quantities than on the Sun.

There is an opinion that one of the four gas giants is actually a failed star. This theory is also supported by the largest number of satellites, of which Jupiter has many - as many as 67. To imagine their behavior in the planet’s orbit, you need a fairly accurate and clear model of the solar system. The largest of them are Callisto, Ganymede, Io and Europa. Moreover, Ganymede is the largest satellite of the planets in the entire solar system, its radius is 2634 km, which is 8% greater than the size of Mercury, the smallest planet in our system. Io has the distinction of being one of only three moons with an atmosphere.

Saturn

The second largest planet and the sixth in the solar system. In comparison with other planets, it is most similar to the Sun in the composition of chemical elements. The radius of the surface is 57,350 km, the year is 10,759 days (almost 30 Earth years). A day here lasts a little longer than on Jupiter - 10.5 Earth hours. In terms of the number of satellites, it is not much behind its neighbor - 62 versus 67. The largest satellite of Saturn is Titan, just like Io, which is distinguished by the presence of an atmosphere. Slightly smaller in size, but no less famous are Enceladus, Rhea, Dione, Tethys, Iapetus and Mimas. It is these satellites that are the objects for the most frequent observation, and therefore we can say that they are the most studied in comparison with the others.

For a long time, the rings on Saturn were considered a unique phenomenon unique to it. Only recently it was established that all gas giants have rings, but in others they are not so clearly visible. Their origin has not yet been established, although there are several hypotheses about how they appeared. In addition, it was recently discovered that Rhea, one of the satellites of the sixth planet, also has some kind of rings.

The solar system is a group of planets revolving in specific orbits around a bright star - the Sun. This star is the main source of heat and light in the solar system.

It is believed that our planetary system was formed as a result of the explosion of one or more stars and this happened about 4.5 billion years ago. At first, the solar system was an accumulation of gas and dust particles, however, over time and under the influence of its own mass, the Sun and other planets arose.

Planets of the Solar System

At the center of the solar system is the Sun, around which eight planets move in their orbits: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune.

Until 2006, Pluto also belonged to this group of planets; it was considered the 9th planet from the Sun, however, due to its significant distance from the Sun and small size, it was excluded from this list and called a dwarf planet. More precisely, it is one of several dwarf planets in the Kuiper belt.

All of the above planets are usually divided into two large groups: the terrestrial group and the gas giants.

The terrestrial group includes such planets as: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars. They are distinguished by their small size and rocky surface, and in addition, they are located closest to the Sun.

Gas giants include: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune. They are characterized by large sizes and the presence of rings, which are ice dust and rocky pieces. These planets consist mainly of gas.

Sun

The Sun is the star around which all the planets and satellites in the solar system revolve. It consists of hydrogen and helium. The age of the Sun is 4.5 billion years, it is only in the middle of its life cycle, gradually increasing in size. Now the diameter of the Sun is 1,391,400 km. In just the same number of years, this star will expand and reach the orbit of the Earth.

The sun is the source of heat and light for our planet. Its activity increases or becomes weaker every 11 years.

Due to the extremely high temperatures on its surface, a detailed study of the Sun is extremely difficult, but attempts to launch a special device as close to the star as possible continue.

Terrestrial group of planets

Mercury

This planet is one of the smallest in the solar system, its diameter is 4,879 km. In addition, it is closest to the Sun. This proximity predetermined a significant temperature difference. The average temperature on Mercury during the day is +350 degrees Celsius, and at night - -170 degrees.

If we take the Earth year as a guide, Mercury makes a full revolution around the Sun in 88 days, and one day there lasts 59 Earth days. It was noticed that this planet can periodically change the speed of its rotation around the Sun, its distance from it and its position.

There is no atmosphere on Mercury; therefore, it is often attacked by asteroids and leaves behind a lot of craters on its surface. Sodium, helium, argon, hydrogen, and oxygen were discovered on this planet.

A detailed study of Mercury is very difficult due to its close proximity to the Sun. Sometimes Mercury can be seen from Earth with the naked eye.

According to one theory, it is believed that Mercury was previously a satellite of Venus, however, this assumption has not yet been proven. Mercury does not have its own satellite.

Venus

This planet is the second from the Sun. In size it is close to the diameter of the Earth, the diameter is 12,104 km. In all other respects, Venus differs significantly from our planet. A day here lasts 243 Earth days, and a year lasts 255 days. The atmosphere of Venus is 95% carbon dioxide, which creates a greenhouse effect on its surface. This results in an average temperature on the planet of 475 degrees Celsius. The atmosphere also contains 5% nitrogen and 0.1% oxygen.

Unlike the Earth, most of whose surface is covered with water, there is no liquid on Venus, and almost the entire surface is occupied by solidified basaltic lava. According to one theory, there used to be oceans on this planet, however, as a result of internal heating, they evaporated, and the vapors were carried away by the solar wind into outer space. Near the surface of Venus, weak winds blow, however, at an altitude of 50 km their speed increases significantly and amounts to 300 meters per second.

Venus has many craters and hills that resemble the earth's continents. The formation of craters is associated with the fact that the planet previously had a less dense atmosphere.

A distinctive feature of Venus is that, unlike other planets, its movement occurs not from west to east, but from east to west. It can be seen from Earth even without the help of a telescope after sunset or before sunrise. This is due to the ability of its atmosphere to reflect light well.

Venus has no satellite.

Earth

Our planet is located at a distance of 150 million km from the Sun, and this allows us to create on its surface a temperature suitable for the existence of liquid water, and, therefore, for the emergence of life.

Its surface is 70% covered with water, and it is the only planet to contain such an amount of liquid. It is believed that many thousands of years ago, steam contained in the atmosphere created the temperature on the Earth's surface necessary for the formation of liquid water, and solar radiation contributed to photosynthesis and the birth of life on the planet.

The peculiarity of our planet is that under the earth’s crust there are huge tectonic plates, which, moving, collide with each other and lead to changes in the landscape.

The diameter of the Earth is 12,742 km. An earthly day lasts 23 hours 56 minutes 4 seconds, and a year lasts 365 days 6 hours 9 minutes 10 seconds. Its atmosphere is 77% nitrogen, 21% oxygen and a small percentage of other gases. None of the atmospheres of other planets in the solar system has such an amount of oxygen.

According to scientists, the age of the Earth is 4.5 billion years, approximately the same age that its only satellite, the Moon, has existed. It is always turned to our planet with only one side. There are many craters, mountains and plains on the surface of the Moon. It reflects sunlight very weakly, so it is visible from Earth in the pale moonlight.

Mars

This planet is the fourth from the Sun and is 1.5 times more distant from it than the Earth. The diameter of Mars is smaller than Earth's and is 6,779 km. The average air temperature on the planet ranges from -155 degrees to +20 degrees at the equator. The magnetic field on Mars is much weaker than that of Earth, and the atmosphere is quite thin, which allows solar radiation to unimpededly affect the surface. In this regard, if there is life on Mars, it is not on the surface.

When surveyed with the help of Mars rovers, it was found that there are many mountains on Mars, as well as dried river beds and glaciers. The surface of the planet is covered with red sand. Iron oxide gives Mars its color.

One of the most frequent events on the planet are dust storms, which are voluminous and destructive. It was not possible to detect geological activity on Mars, however, it is reliably known that significant geological events previously occurred on the planet.

The atmosphere of Mars consists of 96% carbon dioxide, 2.7% nitrogen and 1.6% argon. Oxygen and water vapor are present in minimal quantities.

A day on Mars is similar in length to those on Earth and is 24 hours 37 minutes 23 seconds. A year on the planet lasts twice as long as on Earth - 687 days.

The planet has two satellites Phobos and Deimos. They are small in size and uneven in shape, reminiscent of asteroids.

Sometimes Mars is also visible from Earth with the naked eye.

Gas giants

Jupiter

This planet is the largest in the solar system and has a diameter of 139,822 km, which is 19 times larger than Earth. A day on Jupiter lasts 10 hours, and a year is approximately 12 Earth years. Jupiter is mainly composed of xenon, argon and krypton. If it were 60 times larger, it could become a star due to a spontaneous thermonuclear reaction.

The average temperature on the planet is -150 degrees Celsius. The atmosphere consists of hydrogen and helium. There is no oxygen or water on its surface. There is an assumption that there is ice in the atmosphere of Jupiter.

Jupiter has a huge number of satellites - 67. The largest of them are Io, Ganymede, Callisto and Europa. Ganymede is one of the largest moons in the Solar System. Its diameter is 2634 km, which is approximately the size of Mercury. In addition, a thick layer of ice can be seen on its surface, under which there may be water. Callisto is considered the most ancient of the satellites, since it is its surface that has the largest number of craters.

Saturn

This planet is the second largest in the solar system. Its diameter is 116,464 km. It is most similar in composition to the Sun. A year on this planet lasts quite a long time, almost 30 Earth years, and a day lasts 10.5 hours. The average surface temperature is -180 degrees.

Its atmosphere consists mainly of hydrogen and a small amount of helium. Thunderstorms and auroras often occur in its upper layers.

Saturn is unique in that it has 65 moons and several rings. The rings are made up of small particles of ice and rock formations. Ice dust perfectly reflects light, so Saturn's rings are very clearly visible through a telescope. However, it is not the only planet with a diadem; it is just less noticeable on other planets.

Uranus

Uranus is the third largest planet in the solar system and the seventh from the Sun. It has a diameter of 50,724 km. It is also called the “ice planet”, as the temperature on its surface is -224 degrees. A day on Uranus lasts 17 hours, and a year lasts 84 Earth years. Moreover, summer lasts as long as winter - 42 years. This natural phenomenon is due to the fact that the axis of that planet is located at an angle of 90 degrees to the orbit and it turns out that Uranus seems to be “lying on its side.”

Uranus has 27 moons. The most famous of them are: Oberon, Titania, Ariel, Miranda, Umbriel.

Neptune

Neptune is the eighth planet from the Sun. It is similar in composition and size to its neighbor Uranus. The diameter of this planet is 49,244 km. A day on Neptune lasts 16 hours, and a year is equal to 164 Earth years. Neptune is an ice giant and for a long time it was believed that no weather phenomena occur on its icy surface. However, it was recently discovered that Neptune has raging vortices and wind speeds that are the highest among the planets in the solar system. It reaches 700 km/h.

Neptune has 14 moons, the most famous of which is Triton. It is known to have its own atmosphere.

Neptune also has rings. This planet has 6 of them.

Interesting facts about the planets of the solar system

Compared to Jupiter, Mercury seems like a dot in the sky. These are the actual proportions in the solar system:

Venus is often called the Morning and Evening Star, since it is the first of the stars visible in the sky at sunset and the last to disappear from visibility at dawn.

An interesting fact about Mars is the fact that methane was found on it. Due to the thin atmosphere, it constantly evaporates, which means that the planet has a constant source of this gas. Such a source could be living organisms inside the planet.

There are no seasons on Jupiter. The biggest mystery is the so-called “Great Red Spot”. Its origin on the surface of the planet has not yet been fully elucidated. Scientists suggest that it was formed by a huge hurricane, which has been rotating at very high speed for several centuries.

An interesting fact is that Uranus, like many planets in the solar system, has its own ring system. Due to the fact that the particles that make up them do not reflect light well, the rings could not be detected immediately after the discovery of the planet.

Neptune has a rich blue color, so it was named after the ancient Roman god - the master of the seas. Due to its distant location, this planet was one of the last to be discovered. At the same time, its location was calculated mathematically, and after time it was able to be seen, and precisely in the calculated place.

Light from the Sun reaches the surface of our planet in 8 minutes.

The solar system, despite its long and careful study, is still fraught with many mysteries and secrets that have yet to be revealed. One of the most fascinating hypotheses is the assumption of the presence of life on other planets, the search for which is actively continuing.