the outer planets · jupiter ! brainpop- jupiter nasa- jupiter ! facts about jupiter- " ball...
TRANSCRIPT
THE OUTER PLANETS Chapter 3 Lesson 2
Pages 162- 169 WB pages 55-56
Create the foldable on pg 169.
The Outer Planets
Jupiter and Saturn
Uranus and Neptune
Infer Questions
What are the outer planets?
§ Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune are the outer planets.
§ Properties of the Outer Planets- ú Larger than the inner planets ú Rotate very rapidly ú Interior structure- thick gaseous
atmosphere, a liquid interior, and a small solid core
Comparing the Sizes of Planets
§ How do the sizes of the outer planets compare to one another?
§ Jupiter is the largest planet, followed by Saturn. Neptune and Uranus are close to the same size but Uranus is slightly larger.
Jupiter § BrainPop- Jupiter NASA- Jupiter § Facts about Jupiter-
ú ball of gas, that 1,000 Earth’s could fit inside ú largest planet, diameter is 143,000 km (89,000 miles)- 11 times
Earth’s size ú 778 million km (480 million miles) from the sun, 5 times more
distant from the sun than Earth is ú more mass than the other planets combined ú completes an orbit in 4,333 Earth days- almost 12 Earth years ú rotates on its axis at 3 degrees and rotates faster than any other
planet; It only takes 9 hours and 56 minutes to spin around once on its axis.
ú Atmosphere consists of- mostly hydrogen and helium, small amounts of methane, ammonia, and water vapor
ú Below the atmosphere is a layer of liquid hydrogen and helium. Scientists think that there is a layer of liquid metallic hydrogen below this layer.
More Facts about Jupiter ú core- metal, rock, and ice ú The Giant Red Spot- huge storm, scientist thinks it gets its colored
from the sulfur and phosphorus in the atmosphere, the storm has been blowing continuously for more than 400 years, wind speeds can reach speeds of about 435 km per hour (270 miles per hour), diameter of 24,800 km (15,400 mi)- almost twice the size of the diameter of Earth
ú Jupiter’s largest moons- Ganymede, Callisto, Io, and Europa are called Galilean moons.
� These moons are named after Galileo Galilei, who discovered them with his telescope in 1610.
� Scientist have discovered active volcanoes on Io and scientists wonder if life may be present on Europa.
§ The distance from the Sun is often reported as an average number. What can you infer from this?
§ The orbits of the planets are not circular.
Saturn § BrainPop- Saturn NASA- Saturn § Facts about Saturn-
ú Second largest planet ú 1.4 billion km from the Sun ú it isn’t perfectly spherical- flattened at the poles, it may be
because of its very fast rotation ú A day on Saturn lasts only 10 hours and 39 min. ú Atmosphere- mostly hydrogen and helium, similar to Jupiter,
winds move at 500 meters per second (1,100 mph) near the equator
ú Orbiting around Saturn are rings made of pieces of ice and rock, some of these pieces are as small as a grain of sand while others are as large as a house
ú Scientist think the rings may be pieces of comets, asteroids or moons.
ú BrainPop- Comets NASA- Comets ú A comet is a mixture of frozen gases, ice,
dust, and rock that move in orbit around the Sun.
ú Comets, asteroids, or moons that strayed too close to Saturn could have been broken up after being captured by Saturn’s gravity.
More facts about Saturn
Uranus § BrainPop- Uranus NASA- Uranus § Facts about Uranus:
ú Seventh planet ú 1st planet that was discovered with a telescope. ú Orbits- once every 84 Earth Days ú Unusual looking because it looks like it was knocked on its
side, scientist think that a collision with another object made Uranus tip on its side
ú Uranus is tilted on its axis 98 degrees, summer at the North Pole lasts for 21 years, the same is true for the South Pole
ú Atmosphere- 83% hydrogen, 15% helium, 2% methane; the blue-green color of Uranus is due to methane in the upper atmosphere, scientist think that the core is rock and ice surrounded by an outer layer of ice made of ammonium, water and methane
ú 27 moons, the names of the moons such as Ophelia and Juliet, come from the works of William Shakespeare
Neptune § BrainPop- Neptune NASA- Neptune § Facts about Neptune
ú last of the gas giants and the last of the planets in our solar system
ú 4.5 billion km (2.8 billion mi) from the Sun ú The light from the Sun is 900 times fainter than it is
on Earth. ú 165 years to orbit the Sun, 16 hours to rotate on its
axis, about 4 times the size of Earth ú atmosphere- similar to Uranus, hydrogen, helium,
methane, and water; methane gives the planet the blue color; strongest wind of any planets, wind can blow at speeds up to 2,000 km per hour (1,250 mph); storms have been detected
More Facts about Neptune ú Neptune has at least five rings, none are very
bright. At least 13 moons One moon, Triton, is larger than Pluto. It has
similarities to Earth. It has geysers and even seasons.
Dwarf Planets § Pluto was once considered to be the
9th planet. In August 2006, scientist officially reclassified Pluto as a dwarf planet.
§ A dwarf planet is an object that is spherical in shape, orbits the Sun, and does not clear its orbit of smaller debris.
§ Scientist currently recognize three dwarf planets- Pluto, Eris, and Ceres.
§ NASA- Dwarf Planets
More Facts about Dwarfs Planets § Facts about Pluto-
ú two-thirds the size of Earth’s moon ú average distance from the Sun is 5.9 billion km (3,7
billion mi) ú rocky core surrounded by water and ice
§ Facts about Eris- ú 2005- discovered ú Slightly larger than Pluto ú Takes 557 yrs for Eris to complete one revolution
around the Sun ú One moon- Sysnomia
§ Facts about Ceres- ú Found in the asteroid belt between Mars and
Jupiter
Review § How do the outer planets differ in size from
the inner planets? § The outer planets are much larger than the
inner planets. § How does a day on one of the outer planets
differ from a day on one of the inner planets?
§ The outer planets rotate very rapidly, so a day on one of the outer planets would be short.
Review § Name one way Saturn differs from other
planets. § Saturn’s rings are more noticeable than the
other planet’s, or it is smaller than Jupiter, but larger than Uranus and Neptune.
§ How does Neptune compare to Uranus? § They have similar colors and atmospheres
made of the same gases. Both have rings and a number of moons.
§ How do the giant planets compare to dwarf planets?
§ The dwarf planets are much smaller than the giant planets.
Review § Why are scientists still discovering objects in
the outer parts of our solar system? § New and more powerful telescopes are
being developed that can see farther into space. Our solar system is large and takes time to explore.
§ Comparing Sizes of Planets § Travel to Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and
Neptune § Exploring Different Images (Click on the
images 14-23, describe and name the images, then click on the Part 2 Researcher’s Description at the bottom of the page)
Review § The Solar System § Kids Astronomy- The Solar System, Click on
the different outer planets. § Starchild- Planets and Dwarf Planets § NASA- Grades 5-8 § Order It Up- Solar System § Planet Image Cards § Planetary Orbits § Scholastic- Planets § Solar System Jigsaw Puzzle § Space Sense- Click on the names of the
outer planets at the bottom.
A Little More Review
§ Solar System Trading Cards § Welcome to the Planets § IknowThat.com- Solar System § Solar System Switch-a-roo