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The Structure of the Solar System

Explore the Solar System, a complex assembly of celestial bodies dominated by the Sun, with eight major planets, dwarf planets, and various small bodies like asteroids and comets. The terrestrial planets include Earth, and the gas and ice giants comprise Jupiter and Neptune, respectively. Moons, rings, and the heliosphere add to the system's diversity, all orbiting within the Milky Way.

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1

The ______ System includes eight major planets orbiting a G-type main-sequence star known as the ______.

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Solar Sun

2

The gas giants, ______ and ______, are mainly made up of hydrogen and helium.

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Jupiter Saturn

3

The ice giants, ______ and ______, have a composition that includes more ices.

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Uranus Neptune

4

The Sun, which holds the central position in our Solar System, contributes to ______% of its total mass.

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99.86

5

Life on Earth is sustained by the light and heat emanating from the ______, which is at the heart of our Solar System.

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Sun

6

Characteristics of terrestrial planets

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Dense, rocky, include Mercury (smallest, closest to Sun), Venus, Earth, and Mars (thin atmosphere, largest volcano and canyon).

7

Jupiter's distinctive feature

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Has Great Red Spot, a storm larger than Earth.

8

Saturn's unique aspect

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Known for extensive ring system.

9

______, ______, and ______ are examples of dwarf planets located in the ______ belt.

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Pluto Haumea Makemake Kuiper

10

The ______ belt is a region beyond ______'s orbit, containing many icy bodies, including the dwarf planet ______.

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Kuiper Neptune Pluto

11

The ______ disc is a remote area with some of the furthest known objects in the ______ System.

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scattered Solar

12

The ______ belt's remnants are from the initial formation period of the ______ System and never coalesced into a full-fledged planet.

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asteroid Solar

13

Largest moons of Jupiter and Saturn

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Ganymede orbits Jupiter, larger than Mercury. Titan orbits Saturn, also larger than Mercury.

14

Definition of heliopause

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Heliopause is the boundary where the solar wind's influence ends and interstellar space begins.

15

Solar System's cosmic frontier

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The heliopause represents the edge of the Solar System's influence in the cosmos.

16

Within the Orion Arm, the Solar System is situated in a region known as the ______ ______.

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Local Bubble

17

The closest star system to Earth, ______ ______, is roughly 4.24 light-years away.

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Alpha Centauri

18

The Solar System orbits the center of the Milky Way once every ______ to ______ million years.

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225 250

19

The ______ cloud is a vast spherical shell that may be the origin of long-period comets at the Solar System's edge.

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Oort

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The Structure of the Solar System

Our Solar System is a complex and dynamic collection of celestial objects, all bound by the gravitational pull of the Sun, a G-type main-sequence star that accounts for 99.86% of the system's mass. At the core of the Solar System, the Sun provides the light and heat that sustains life on Earth. Orbiting the Sun are eight major planets, divided into two categories: the inner terrestrial planets—Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars—known for their rocky compositions, and the outer planets—Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. The latter group includes the gas giants Jupiter and Saturn, which are primarily composed of hydrogen and helium, and the ice giants Uranus and Neptune, which contain more ices in their makeup.
Realistic model of the solar system with Sun in the center, colorful planets in order and asteroid belts on a starry background.

Planetary Composition and Characteristics

The inner Solar System's terrestrial planets are dense and rocky, with Mercury being the smallest and closest to the Sun, and Mars featuring a thin atmosphere and the largest volcano and canyon in the Solar System. The outer planets are much larger and lack solid surfaces. Jupiter, the largest planet, has a Great Red Spot, a storm larger than Earth, while Saturn is distinguished by its extensive ring system. Uranus and Neptune, the ice giants, have a higher proportion of water, ammonia, and methane ices. The Solar System originated from a molecular cloud around 4.6 billion years ago, with the Sun forming first, followed by the planets coalescing from the remaining material in a protoplanetary disk.

Dwarf Planets and Other Small Bodies

Dwarf planets, such as Ceres in the asteroid belt and Pluto, Haumea, Makemake, and Eris in the Kuiper belt, are significant members of the Solar System. These bodies, along with countless asteroids, comets, and meteoroids, constitute the small Solar System bodies. The asteroid belt contains remnants from the early Solar System that never formed into a planet, while the Kuiper belt, extending beyond Neptune's orbit, is home to many icy objects, including the dwarf planet Pluto. The scattered disc, a distant and sparsely populated region, is where some of the most distant known objects in the Solar System reside.

Natural Satellites and the Heliosphere

The planets and some dwarf planets of the Solar System are accompanied by a diverse array of moons, ranging from tiny asteroid-sized bodies to those larger than the planet Mercury, such as Ganymede orbiting Jupiter and Titan around Saturn. The Solar System is also encompassed by the heliosphere, a protective bubble created by the solar wind that extends well beyond the orbit of Pluto. The boundary of the heliosphere, the heliopause, is where the solar wind's influence ends and interstellar space begins. This region is the frontier of the Solar System's influence in the cosmos.

The Solar System in the Milky Way Galaxy

The Solar System resides in the Orion–Cygnus Arm of the Milky Way galaxy, orbiting the galactic center at about 27,000 light-years away. It is part of the Local Bubble, a cavity in the interstellar medium within the Orion Arm, and is surrounded by the Local Interstellar Cloud. The nearest star system, the Alpha Centauri system, includes Proxima Centauri, which is approximately 4.24 light-years from Earth. The Solar System completes an orbit around the Milky Way's center roughly every 225 to 250 million years. The hypothesized Oort cloud, a spherical shell of icy objects believed to be the source of long-period comets, marks the outer edge of the Solar System, extending up to 100,000 astronomical units from the Sun.