1. INNER PLANETS Terrestrial Planets are the Four planets closest to the sun. These planets have rocky terrain, and have higher temperatures due to receiving more of the suns energy.

2. MERCURY  It appears very similar to our moon with lots of craters.  Mercury has a very small orbit and is never very far away from the sun.  The best time to view mercury is just before sunrise or just after sunset.

3. MARINER 10  Pictures have been taken on space missions such as the Mariner 10 space probe which measured the Environment. Atmosphere, surface and characteristics of Mercury and Venus.

5.  Solar system distances are measured in how far the sun is away from Earth.  That distance is measured in Astronomical Units(AU) = 150 million KM. Mercury is 0.4 AU away from the sun and experiences extreme temperatures. The daytime temperatures are over 670 K (746 f), which is hot enough to melt Tin. At night temps are around 103 K ( -274 f) which is below the freezing point of water. 1 degree Fahrenheit = 255.928 K

6. LONG DAYS  Mercury spins very slow on its axis.  1 Mercury day = 176 Earth days.  1 Mercury year = 0.24 Earth years  This means that Mercury has 1 day every 2 years!

7. VENUS  Venus is 0.7 AU from the sun.  It is visible near sunrise or sunset and is often called the Morning Star or Evening Star.  Mariner 10 allowed scientist to discover that Venus has clouds of CO2 which make it very reflective.  Venus has mountains and plains like other, but differs in that it spins in the opposite direction on its axis.

8.  1 Venus day = 117 Earth Days  1 Venus year = 0.6 Earth Years  Venus has a 90 the atmospheric pressure that Earth does.. The increased pressure keeps traps in large amounts of Sulfuric Acid and high temperatures.  Venus temperature is 700K due to “runaway” greenhouse effect.

9. EARTH  How far is Earth From the sun? 1AU  The Hydrosphere is the water portion of the Earth (liquid & frozen). What happens to life under the ice?  Water acts as a Heat Piggy Bank by absorbing and releasing heat.  Ex. What parts of the country are warmer? Coastal or Inland? Why?  Earth is the only planet with large amounts of liquid surface water and is the only planet that can sustain life.

10. EARTH’S ATMOSPHERE  Our atmosphere protects us from radiation and sustains life.  Our atmosphere consist of 78% Nitrogen, 21% Oxygen and 1% Carbon Dioxide and other gases.  The greenhouse affect also helps with temperature control by trapping in warm air so we do not freeze at night.  The upper atmosphere blocks out harmful radiation and particles released from the sun.

11.  The upper atmosphere also protects us from space debris by causing it to heat up and vaporize as it enters our atmosphere.  Earth is the only planet with enough Oxygen to sustain life.  Compare our atmosphere to Venus and Mercury.

12. MARS Would you go to Mars? The Mars One company claims it will only cost $6,000,000,000 and will take about 7 months to get there. NASA says the total cost will be between 80 & 100 billion U.S. dollars to get humans on Mars and back.

13. MARS EXPLORATION  Viking 1&2 sent Probes to mars in 1976.  1997 Pathfinder mission put the Sojourner robotic rover on the surface of Mars to examine rocks.  Probes have taken images of mars that show that it has frozen Polar Caps. People want to use the frozen poles as a water source when colonizing the planet.

14.  Mars is 1.5 AU from the sun and orbits the sun in 1.9 Earth Years.  1 Mars day = 24.7 Earth hours.  The atmosphere is very thin and is contains lots of CO2.  Temperatures range from 144k ( -200 f ) to 300 K (80 f).  Mars has two satellites – Phobos & Deimos.  Mars is approximately 11% the mass of Earth.

15. VOLCANOES  Mars has the largest volcanoes.  Olympus Mons is the largest mountain in the solar system. 3 times the size of Mount Everest.  The mountains form from lava flow. The atmosphere is very thin causing low gravity.  Mars surface is dusty due to high amounts of Iron Oxide causing it’s red coloration.  The surface has lots of craters and frequent dust storms due to the unprotective thin atmosphere.

16. DIVIDING LINE  The Asteroid Belt divides the inner and outer planets.  Hundreds of small rocky objects (Asteroids) lie between Mars and Jupiter.