1. Complete Section 3 Study Guide
Outer Planets
Complete Section 3 Study Guide

2. Outer Planets Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune ?Pluto? “Gas Giants”
Larger planets than the inner planets
Exert more gravity

3. Jupiter Jupiter is the largest planet (317.83 x Earth)
Has a thick atmosphere of 90% hydrogen & 10% helium
8 space probes
Average temp is -108°C

4. Jupiter’s Red Spot
The Great Red Spot, a huge storm of swirling gas that has lasted for 350 years.
Jupiter does not have a solid surface. The planet is a ball of liquid surrounded by gas.

5. Moons of Jupiter Jupiter has 63 moons total and 4 large Galilean moonsIo
Europa
Ganymede
Callisto

6. Io
Io is the fifth moon of Jupiter. It’s the third largest of Jupiter’s moons.
Io has hundreds of volcanic calderas. Some of the volcanoes are active.

7. Saturn Saturn is the second largest planet
The atmosphere is 90% hydrogen & 10% helium
It is the least dense planet (float in water!)
Below the atmosphere is liquid H & HE
Over 60 moons
4 space probes

8. Rings of Saturn
Saturn’s rings are composed of small countless ice & dust particles.
The rings are very thin. Though they’re 250,000km or more in diameter, they’re less than one kilometer thick.

9. Uranus Uranus rotates on a 90° tilt so it rotates from top to bottom
Uranus is blue-green because of the methane in its atmosphere
Is 4 x bigger than Earth.
Composed of hydrogen, helium & methane
42 years of sunlight, 42 years of darkness
27 moons
Voyager II space probe

10. Neptune Neptune’s atmosphere contains clouds.
4th largest planet but most dense
Takes 165 Earth years to revolve around sun
Mostly H, He, & Methane gas
14 moons
Core is metal with a mantle of ammonia & methane ice
1 space probe by Voyager II

11. Pluto Pluto is now considered a dwarf planet
Pluto is the only outer planet that is rocky
Smaller than our moon

12. Comets
Comets are chunks of ice & dust with a long narrow elliptical orbit
They have a nucleus and a tail

13. Asteroids Asteroids are small objects that rotate around the sun
An asteroid belt separates Mars and Jupiter

14. Meteors
A meteoroid is a chunk of rock that usually comes from a comet or asteroid
It is called a meteor when it reaches Earth’s atmosphere and burns up
It is called a meteorite if it strikes Earth’s surface
Meteor Crater in Arizona