"Natural Science 4" is an interactive encyclopedia that includes scientific information in the understanding of fourth grade students, wonderfully illustrated and animated.
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* Chapter 3 Lesson 16 *
* The planets of the Solar System *
The planets of the Solar System are the largest celestial bodies after the Sun. Although they do not produce their own energy, they reflect the light and heat produced by the Sun. They are divided into telluric (or terrestrial) and gaseous planets. Tellurics are made up of rocks and metals. They are: Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. There are also four gas planets: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.
Mercury, the closest planet to the Sun, is named after a very fast Roman god. It is just as fast, because it only takes 88 days to go around the Sun once. Lacking atmosphere, it looks like a huge stone. The day is very hot, with temperatures reaching 430°C, and at night they can drop to -180°C.
Venus, also known as the Moonlight, is the hottest planet in the Solar System. She is also called "sister Earth", because the two are almost the same size. Do you know how to recognize it? Look for the brightest celestial body after the Sun and the Moon. Unfortunately, we cannot live there, because its air is very toxic. The heat is stifling and the nights are very long (58 Earth days).
Earth, also called the "blue planet", has 71% of its surface covered by water. Life on Earth takes different forms such as: plants, animals, fungi and bacteria. Living things are protected from the sun's harmful rays by the ozone layer. It reduces the temperature differences between day and night, which is why the Earth is neither too hot nor too cold. The moon, the natural satellite of the earth is the nearest celestial body. It takes a second for light to travel from it to us.
Mars or the "red planet" has two natural satellites, Phobos and Deimos. The question everyone is asking is whether there was life on Mars. Scientists confirm that in the basement of the planet there is water in a liquid state. They even discovered the dry beds of some rivers. Unfortunately, living conditions on Mars today are impossible. Its atmosphere is far too thin to protect living things from the sun's rays. Also, at night temperatures can drop to -140°C. Kind of cold, isn't it?
Jupiter is one of the gas giants, a huge ball of gas, named after the Roman god who rules Earth and Heaven. Unlike the telluric planets, it has no land to land on. Jupiter has 67 natural satellites, one of which is called Europa. Storms and heavy rains rule this tormented planet. Jupiter's Great Red Spot is an atmospheric storm that has been wreaking havoc for the past 400 years. This spot is big enough to swallow three Earth-sized planets. Scary, isn't it?
The second largest planet in the solar system, Saturn is a gas giant whose splendid rings have fascinated scientists since the beginning. It is made up of moving rock and ice. Specific to this planet are the storms that appear once every 30 years, with winds that reach 1800 kilometers per hour. Saturn has 82 moons, the most famous being Titan. It rotates very quickly around its axis, exactly in 10 hours and almost 40 minutes. Very dizzying!
The planet Uranus is the seventh and penultimate planet in the Solar System. Like Saturn, Uranus has rings made of rock and ice. He is also 27 months old. Because it is so far from the Sun, Uranus takes 84 years to make a complete rotation around it. This makes each season on the planet last 21 years. If we were to live on Uranus, which is impossible, we would have a long wait for our favorite season. Unfortunately, there is no life on Uranus. Its climate is hellish. Winds blow at over 900 km per hour.
Neptune is the smallest and coolest of the four large gas balls. In their studies, astronomers noticed a strange dark spot, called the "Great Black Spot". It is a terrible storm that appears and disappears in different places on the planet. Like Saturn, Neptune has rings, but very thin ones. For this reason they are difficult to observe from Earth. The gas giant also has 13 moons, the largest being Triton. Unfortunately, there is no sign of life on Neptune. The temperature there can reach -220°C.
If it were possible to travel in space, which planet would you like to go to? Why?