Universe General Knowledge
Neptune: Diameter 49,000 Kilometer Moons 8 Avg.Distance to Sun 4,497 million KM Time to Orbit the Sun 165 YearsFacts: It is denser & little smaller than Uranus.
Its Atmosphere appear blue, with quickly changing white clouds often suspended high above an apparent surface.
Atmosphere constituents are mostly hydrocarbon compounds.
It Emits about 2.3 times more energy than it receives from the sun and the Aurora phenomenon was noticed by Voyager II.
Uranus
Diameter 52,096 Kilometer Moons 17 Avg.Distance to Sun 2,852.8 million KM Time to Orbit the Sun 84 Years
Facts
Waterly Uranus is the only planet that lies on its side.
One pole, than the other, faces the Sun as it orbits.
Voyager-I found nine dark, compact rings around the planet and a corkscrew-shaped magnetic field that stretches millions of kilometers.
Mars
Diameter 6,755.2 Kilometer Moons 2 Avg.Distance to Sun 225.6 million KM Time to Orbit the Sun 687 Days
Facts
The Viking probes failed to Beneath its thin atmosphere.
Mars is barren, covered with pink soil and boulders.
Long ago it was active, the surface is marked with dormant volcanoes and deep chasms where water once freely flowed.
Venus
Diameter 12,032 Kilometer Moons None Avg.Distance to Sun 107.52 million KM Time to Orbit the Sun 225 Days
Facts
Earth's twin in size and mass, sparingly hot Venus is perpetually veiled behind reflective sulfuric-acid clouds.
Probes and radar mapping have pierced the clouds and carbon-dioxide environment to reveal flat, rocky plains & signs of volcanic activity.
Mercury
Diameter 4,849.6 Kilometer Moons None Avg.Distance to Sun 57.6 million KM Time to Orbit the Sun 88 Days
Facts
Tiny Mercury, slightly larger than Earth's moon.
Races along its elliptical orbital 1,76,000 kilometer per hour.
A speed that keeps it from being drawn into the Sun's gravity field.
The crated planet has no atmosphere, days are scorching hot and nights, frigid.
Earth
Diameter 12,732.2 Kilometer Moons 1 Avg.Distance to Sun 148.8 million KM Time to Orbit the Sun 365 Days
Facts
Uniquely moderate temperature and the presence of oxygen and copious water maker Earth the only planet in the solar system to support life.
Jupiter
Diameter 1,41,968 Kilometer Moons 16 Avg.Distance to Sun 772.8 million KM Time to Orbit the Sun 11.9 Years
Facts
Two Pioneer space probes photographed the Great Red Spot on the Solar system's largest planet.
Voyagers I and II later showed it is an enormous eddy in the turbulent cloud cover. Earth the only planet in the solar system to support life.
They also spotted dusty rings, three new moons and volcanoes on the Moon.
Saturn
Diameter 1,19,296 Kilometer Moons 20 or more Avg.Distance to Sun 1,417.6 million KM Time to Orbit the Sun 29.5 Years
Facts
Voyager I found that the celebrated rings of the golden giant Saturn are composed of thousands of rippling, spiraling bands just 100 feets thick.
The moon Titan has a nitrogen atmosphere and hydrocarbons.
Sun
Diameter 13,84,000 Kilometer Statellites 9 Planets Age 4.5 billion years
Facts
A rather ordinary, middle age star, the gaseous sun may reach a temperature of 27-millon degrees Celsius at its core.
Its 11 years cycle is now approaching a solar maximum, a period marked by frequent sunspots and flares.
On Earth, some radio waves will be disturbed and the amazing sky streamers called Northern Lights will appear.
The solar system consists of the Sun; the eight official planets ( Pluto not regarded as sattelite any more), at least three "dwarf planets", more than 130 satellites of the planets, a large number of small bodies (the comets and asteroids), and the interplanetary medium.
The eight bodies officially categorized as planets are often further classified in several ways:
* by composition:
terrestrial or rocky planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars:
+ The terrestrial planets are composed primarily of rock and metal and have relatively high densities, slow rotation, solid surfaces, no rings and few satellites.
jovian or gas planets: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune:
+ The gas planets are composed primarily of hydrogen and helium and generally have low densities, rapid rotation, deep atmospheres, rings and lots of satellites.
* by size:
small planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars.
+ The small planets have diameters less than 13000 km.
giant planets: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.
+ The giant planets have diameters greater than 48000 km.
The giant planets are sometimes also referred to as gas giants.
* by position relative to the Sun:
inner planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars.
outer planets: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune.
The asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter forms the boundary between the inner solar system and the outer solar system.
* by position relative to Earth:
inferior planets: Mercury and Venus.
+ closer to the Sun than Earth.
+ The inferior planets show phases like the Moon's when viewed from Earth.
superior planets: Mars thru Neptune.
+ farther from the Sun than Earth.
+ The superior planets always appear full or nearly so.
* by history:
classical planets: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn.
+ known since prehistorical times
+ visible to the unaided eye
modern planets: Uranus, Neptune.
+ discovered in modern times
+ visible only with optical aid
Earth.
The IAU has recently decided that "classical" should refer to all eight planets (Mercury thru Neptune, including Earth but not Pluto). This is contrary to historical usage but makes some sense from a 21st century perspective.
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