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The Solar System. By: MariCaitlin Riggles. The Inner Planets.
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The Solar System By: MariCaitlinRiggles
The Inner Planets The inner planets are first four planets of the Solar System. They are the closest to the sun. Mercury is the first planet, it is closest to the sun. Next, is Venus. Venus is the hottest planet in the Solar System, and is also the second brightest object in the sky. Earth is the next planet. It is the only known planet with living things. The rest is made up of land. Lastly, is Mars. Mars is known as the “Red Planet” because it’s surface from far away looks red.
The Outer Planets The outer planets are the last four planets of the Solar System. They are the farthest away from the Sun. First, is the planet Jupiter. Jupiter is a “Gas Giant” and the largest known planet. Next, is Saturn. Saturn is also a “Gas Giant” and has rings around it. Then, it is Uranus. Uranus is covered is blue clouds and very gaseous. Lastly, is Neptune. Neptune’s is solid and is a “Gas Giant” too.
Earth’s Surface Earth’s surface is 71% water and 29% land. This planet has five oceans; Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Southern, and Arctic. The Pacific Ocean is the largest, and the Arctic Ocean is the smallest. Antarctica has as much ice as the Atlantic Ocean has water. Earth has seven continents, which include: Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia. Earth is the only planet to have water in three states of matter (liquid, gas, and solid).
Earth’s Surface 2 Earth’s continents move about 2 cm every year. 97% of Earth’s water is salt. 99% of Earth’s gold is in it’s core. A solid iron ball 1,500 miles wide sits at the center of Earth, the temperature there is about 9,900 degrees Fahrenheit. Earth has many geographical features; such as mountains, volcanoes, deserts, valleys, canyons, etc. Earth is the only known planet in the Solar System to have active volcanoes.
Mars’ Surface Mars is known as the “Red Planet” because its surface from far away looks red. The red color comes from the iron present in the soil. Much of the iron reaches the atmosphere in the form of dust particles, giving the sky a yellow-orange color. Mars has a dusty, rocky surface. This planet is 4,200 miles in diameter. Mars experiences violent dust storms which continually change it’s surface.
Mars’ Surface 2 Mars, believe it or not, is actually cold. This is because, Mars has a very thin atmosphere made mostly of carbon dioxide. It is not thick enough to trap the sun’s heat. Temperatures range from about -120 Degrees Celsius on winter nights 25 Degrees Celsius in the summer. Mars has many channels, plains, and canyons on its surface which could have caused water erosion in the past. The polar ice caps on Mars consist of frozen Co2 (dry ice) which lies over a layer of ice.
Curiosity Curiosity is NASA’s seventh rover to successfully land on Mars. It is about the size of a small car. Curiosity is filled with scientific tools, cameras, and a weather station. It also has a robotic arm with a power drill, a laser that can zap different rocks, a chemistry lab to examine the chemical building blocks of life, and a detector to look for dangerous radiation on the surface. Curiosity has been on Mars for a little more than a year now.
How Earth and Mars Are Alike Earth and Mars are alike in many ways. Both Mars and Earth share some of the basic elements needed for life, such as, nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon. Earth and Mars also have some of the same geographical features. Canyons, volcanoes, and mountains are/just a few of the features Mars and Earth share. There is some evidence that water existed on Mars, just like Earth. Mars and Earth are both Inner Planets.
How Earth and Mars Are Different Mars is very different from the planet Earth. Unlike Earth, Mars has a very thin atmosphere. It is also smaller in comparison to size. Mars is much colder than Earth. The temperatures may reach about negative 90 Degrees Fahrenheit. Mars does not have plate tectonics, unlike the planet Earth. This causes many more hot spots than what we have on Earth. The landforms on Mars are also larger in size than what we see on our planet. The gravity experienced there is also .375 on you would experience on Earth.
