Planets of the Solar System

1. Mercury
Characteristics:
• Smallest and Closest planet to the Sun
• It has no Moon
• Surface temperature=427 C
• Dry Planet
• Barren Planet
2. Venus
Characteristics:
• Second Planet, smaller than Earth
• Hottest Planet
• It appears in the east as the "morning star"
• It appears in the west as the "evening star"
• Surface temperature=462 C
3. Earth
Characteristics:
• Largest of the inner planets
• It has one moon:
• Moon
• Rocky Planet
• The only planet known to have living things
• Surface temperature=7,000C to 870C
4. Mars
Characteristics:
• Second largest planet and the fourth from the Sun
• It has two moons:
• Deimos
• Phobos
• Similar to earth
• It has seasons, an approximately 24 hour a day
• Mars has a carbon dioxide atmosphere
5. Jupiter
Characteristics:
• Biggest of all Planets
• A thin ring of fine dust particles surrounds Jupiter
• Sixteen moons orbit Jupiter
• Jupiter is made up of:
• Gas
• Liquid
• Hydrogen
• Helium
• Its temperature can be as high as 30,000 C
6. Saturn
Characteristics:
• Known for its large ring
• It has 62 satellites
• Saturn has 18 moons:
• Phoebe is the farthest moon
• It has a hot, solid inner core of iron and rocky material
• Temperature averages=178 C
7. Uranus
Characteristics:
• Discovered in 1781 by Wiliam Herschel
• It has 11 thin rings surrounding it
• Uranus has 27 known moons, including:
• Titania
• Oberon
• Umbriel
• Miranda
• Uranus and Neptune are also termed "ice giants".
• Temperature averages=216 C
8. Neptune
Characteristics:
• Smaller than Uranus but it is denser
• Neptune has 13 known satellites, including:
• Triton
• Discovered in 1846 by two astronomers, Adams and Leverrier
• There is a central core of rock and ice
• Temperature averages=216 C
9. Pluto
Characteristics:
• It is a dwarf planet
• Discovered in 1930 by the Lowell Laboratory
• It is the smallest planet in the Solar System
• It has one satellite:
• Charon
• Temperature about 228 C