Mercury was the roman god of eloquence, games of chance, commerce, and story telling, and was the messenger-god of Jupiter.
Venus
Venus is the closes planet to us and the second closes to the sun. It is the hottest planet the average temperature is 457o C. Venus is so bright that some times it looks like a star.
The surface of Venus has volcanoes, craters, mountains and massive lava plains. Like mercury it has no moons or rings.
Venus was the roman goddess of love and beauty.
Earth
Earth is the biggest of the inner planets it is the only planet known to have water and to be liveable. Earth can be as close as 146million km and as far as 152million km from the sun. It takes 24 hours for the earth to rotate 360 o and 365days and 5 hours to do 1 complete orbit of the sun. The earth has one moon. 70% of the earth is covered in water.
The earth’s air contains 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, 1% argon and a tiny amount of carbon dioxide, methane, helium, hydrogen, krypton, neon, ozone and xenon.
The earth is made up of many layers the crust – the top layer of the earth is solid rock it can be up to 70km thick it is divided up into many plates, Mantle – the mantle is the second layer it is 2.900km thick and 8700oC, Outer core – Made up of liquid iron and gets as hot as 2200oC, Inner core – the centre of the earth is 4,500oC and is made of liquid iron and nickel.
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the sun. It is the most similar heat to Earths -129oC to 0oC. Some people think that Aliens live on mars. Many scientists think that there was once/is water on Mars. It takes 1.88 years to orbit the Sun. It is 35million miles from earth and up to 249million km from the Sun.
Mars has some of the toughest terrain with volcanoes up to 23 km and valleys of 6km. The thought dead volcano Olympus Mons rises 23km.
Jupiter
Jupiter is the biggest planet in our solar system the diameter measuring 142,800 km. Jupiter has 17 moons and a ring system. Jupiter’s temperature is –150C. The gravity is 2.64 times of the earths because of its size.
On Jupiter is a big red spot called the great red spot it is thought to be a hurricane that has gone on for at least 400 years.
It takes 12 earth years to orbit the sun and 9.8 hours to rotate on its axis.
Jupiter is 588billion km from the earth and at times 817billion km from the sun.
In Roman mythology, Jupiter was the king of heaven and Earth and of all the Olympian gods.
Saturn
Saturn has 28 moons and an amazing ring system. Saturn’s diameter is 119,871 km. Saturn is 170oC below freezing. Saturn can get as far from the moon as 1.5billion km. It take 29 and one half years to do one full orbit around the sun.
Saturn’s ring system is made up of many separate rings that look like one big one. The rings are manly ice and rock. It looks so beautiful because the ice makes a rainbow.
Uranus
Uranus is the seventh planet from the sun it has 21 known moons and an unusual ring system. Uranus is – 200oC. Its diameter is 51,488 km it’s distance from the earth is 2.57billion km and its maximum distance from the sun is 3billion km. One Orbit around the sun is 84 years.
discovered Uranus.
Neptune
Neptune is normally the eighth but is some times the ninth because it sometimes it crosses Pluto’s orbit. It is as cold as
-210o C. Neptune had eight moons and a fin ring system. The planet can be 4.54billion km from the sun and 4.3billion km from the earth. It takes 165 years for Neptune to do a full orbit around the sun.
One of Neptune’s major moons is Triton it is an ice moon with a water environment like the north poll it might have life on it.
Neptune was the name that ancient Romans gave to the Greek god of the sea and earthquakes.
Pluto
Pluto is the furthest planet from the Sun, an amazing 7.4billion km at times. Pluto’s only moon Charon is a similar size to Pluto only 12,200km away from each other and they even orbit each over; it is like a double planet. Pluto is 229oC below freezing. It takes 248 earth years to do one orbit around the sun.
Pluto’s strange orbit causes it to come within the orbit of Neptune. Pluto was the eighth planet from the Sun from February 7th, 1979 through February 11, 1999. Now Pluto will remain the ninth planet through the 23rd century.
