1. STARDOME PRESENTS THE SOLAR SYSTEM Images by courtesy of

2. The Earth – our home in space

3. The Universe of Galaxies Each galaxy is a city of stars

4. Our galaxy – the Milky Way You are here

5. Stars in the Milky Way 500 light years 500 light years = 500 x 9 000 000 000 000 kilometres 500 light years = 4 500 000 000 000 000 kilometres!

6. The Sun – our local star

7. A sunspot An area of cooler gas sinking into the sun

8. 4 small rock planets 4 giant gas planets Mercury Venus Earth Mars JupiterSaturn Uranus Neptune Pluto

9. Orbits of the inner planets

10. Orbits of the Outer Planets

11. Mercury Daytime 420 degrees Night Minus 180 degrees

12. Meteorite craters No air No water No life

13. Venus Shrouded in clouds

14. Venus Uncovered by radar

15. Surface of Venus Suffocating carbon dioxide Temperature 500 C Acid clouds Crushing atmosphere

16. Earth Warm Air Water Life

17. Seasons on Earth Summer Winter Long days Short Nights Short days Long nights Sun

18. Sunset over Europe

19. The Moon

20. Phases of the Moon Sunlight

22. Volcanoes Meteorite craters Valleys MARS

23. MARS, THE RED PLANET

24. The face on Mars?

25. Surface of Mars Thin carbon dioxide atmosphere Temperature minus 20 degrees C Water frozen into soil

26. Water on Mars Mars from orbit Showing river channels made by water long ago

27. Surface of Mars from the Spirit lander

28. Mars Express: Volcanic crater 1 km wide

29. A human landing on Mars – maybe by 2020?

30. Asteroids

31. Meteorite Crater, Arizona Deep Impact

32. Jupiter – gas giant

33. 60 moons

34. The 4 great moons of Jupiter Io A world of volcanoes Europa Ice covered Water beneath the ice? Ganymede Ice covered, largest moon in the Solar System Callisto Ice surface, Covered in craters

35. Saturn, Lord of the Rings

36. 30 Moons Titan

37. TITAN The only moon known to have an atmosphere. 15 January 2005: Huygens spacecraft lands on Titan

38. URANUS: 21 moons

39. Uranus A planet knocked on its side

40. NEPTUNE: 11 Moons

41. Sedna Planet 10 ? Diameter: 1600 km Distance from Sun: 13 billion km Not a planet: one of many icy worlds in the Kuiper Belt beyond Pluto

42. PLUTO Charon

43. COMET A space iceberg

44. The Oort Cloud of comets

45. Gas tail Dust tail COMET HALE-BOPP 1997

46. Meteor – shooting star 12 August13 December

47. Meteor Storm !

48. The Solar System Nine wonderful worlds

49. SOLAR SYSTEM Is a STARDOME PRODUCTION By DENNIS ASHTON, FRAS Images from