Transcript Slide 1

Our Solar System Planets
Their Size and Distance
The Sun and Planets of the Solar System
Relative Size of the Sun & Planets
The Maine Solar System Model
University of Maine, Presque Isle
• A 40 mile (64.6 km) long scale model of the Solar System, at a
scale of 1 mile (1.6 km) equaling the distance between the
centers of the Earth and Sun
• The model has 10 major components, those being the Sun and
the nine planets from Mercury to Pluto
• Included are moons for Earth, Saturn, Jupiter (4) and Pluto
• The planets are exhibited as 3D models.
• The 2 largest planetary models, Jupiter and Saturn, measure 4-5
feet across (1.22 - 1.52 m), and the 2 mid-sized planets Uranus
and Neptune measure 21-22 inches (53 - 56 cm)
http://pages.umpi.edu/~nmms/solar/
Relative Sizes of the Planets when
Sun is included
Relative Sizes of the Planets
What are we doing in the Lab today?
1. Measure the diameter of a sphere representing one of the larger
planets, Saturn, in order to determine a scale
2. Convert the true (actual) diameter and distance from the sun for all the
planets using this same scale factor, and record the results in a
prepared worksheet table
A set of paper images of the planets are available at this same scale to
measure as a check on your diameter calculations
3. Introduce the Astronomical Unit (AU) as a new more convenient unit
for solar system distances
4. Calculate the distances for all the planets in Astronomical Units (AU)
and record the results in your worksheet
5. Using a lab floor tile to represent an AU, determine where each planet
should be located to produce a Solar System distance model
Modeling the Planets and their Distance from the Sun
Student Worksheet Table
Scale: 1 centimeter : 10,000 kilometer
Scale: 1 AU = 150,000,000 km
1 AU : 1 floor tile
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
True
Scaled
True Distance
Scaled Distance
Scaled Distance
Diameter
Diameter
from the Sun
from the Sun
from the Sun
(kilometers)
(centimeters)
(AU)
---
---
---
(kilometers) (centimeters)
Sun
1,400,000
Mercury
4,878
58,000,000
Venus
12,104
108,000,000
Earth
12,756
150,000,000
Mars
6,794
228,000,000
Jupiter
142,800
778,000,000
Saturn
120,540
1,427,000,000
Uranus
51,200
2,871,000,000
Neptune
49,500
4,497,000,000
2,200
5,913,000,000
Pluto*
* Dwarf planet
1.0