1. What is it?
Our solar system is made up of the sun and everything that travel around it. This includes eight planets and their natural satellites such as Earth's moon, dwarf planets such as Pluto and Ceres, asteroids, comets and meteoroids.
2. Sun-Centered
The sun is the center of our solar system. It contains almost all of the mass in our solar system and exerts a tremendous gravitational pull on planets and other bodies.
3. Age
Our solar system formed about 4.6 billion years ago.
4. Can Stand on Them
The four planets closest to the Sun - Mercury, Venus, and Mars - are called the terrestrial planets because they have solid, rocky surfaces.
5. Can't Stand on Them
Two of the outer planets beyond the orbit of Mars - Jupiter and Saturn - are known as gas giant; the more distant Uranus and Neptune are called ice giants.
6. Beyond Neptune
Most of the known dwarf planets exist in an icy zone beyond Neptune called Kuiper Belt, which is also the point of origin for many comets. Ceres is the exception. It is the main asteroid belt.
7. Hard to Breathe
Many objects in out solar system have atmospheres, including planets, some dwarf planets and even a couple moons. But none of them are suitable for humans.
8. Spiral Galaxy
Out solar system is located in the Orion Arm of the Milky Way Galaxy. There are most likely billion of other solar systems in our galaxy. And there are billion of the galaxies in the Universe.
9. Taking Measure
We measure distances in our solar system by Astronomical Units (AU). One AU is equal to the distance between the sun and the Earth, which is about 93 million miles (150 million Km).
10. Going to Distance
NASA's twin Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft are the first spacecraft to explore the outer reaches of our reaches of our solar system.
Our solar system is made up of the sun and everything that travel around it. This includes eight planets and their natural satellites such as Earth's moon, dwarf planets such as Pluto and Ceres, asteroids, comets and meteoroids.
2. Sun-Centered
The sun is the center of our solar system. It contains almost all of the mass in our solar system and exerts a tremendous gravitational pull on planets and other bodies.
3. Age
Our solar system formed about 4.6 billion years ago.
4. Can Stand on Them
The four planets closest to the Sun - Mercury, Venus, and Mars - are called the terrestrial planets because they have solid, rocky surfaces.
5. Can't Stand on Them
Two of the outer planets beyond the orbit of Mars - Jupiter and Saturn - are known as gas giant; the more distant Uranus and Neptune are called ice giants.
6. Beyond Neptune
Most of the known dwarf planets exist in an icy zone beyond Neptune called Kuiper Belt, which is also the point of origin for many comets. Ceres is the exception. It is the main asteroid belt.
7. Hard to Breathe
Many objects in out solar system have atmospheres, including planets, some dwarf planets and even a couple moons. But none of them are suitable for humans.
8. Spiral Galaxy
Out solar system is located in the Orion Arm of the Milky Way Galaxy. There are most likely billion of other solar systems in our galaxy. And there are billion of the galaxies in the Universe.
9. Taking Measure
We measure distances in our solar system by Astronomical Units (AU). One AU is equal to the distance between the sun and the Earth, which is about 93 million miles (150 million Km).
10. Going to Distance
NASA's twin Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft are the first spacecraft to explore the outer reaches of our reaches of our solar system.
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