Solar System Essay -- essays research papers

The Solar SystemByDelete this text and type your name here.IntroductionAs far as we know, there be nine planets locked in orbit around the Sun. Only one, our own Earth, supports life. But there are countless other suns throughout countless galaxies scattered crossways the expanse of the universe. We still dont know if life exists on another planet in some other galaxy. hectogramNamed for the wing-footed messenger of the papistic gods, Mercury races around its orbit at a dizzying speed of 30 miles (48 kilometers) per second, making the Mercurial year only 88 Earth days long. In contrast, one rotation around its axisor a single daytakes almost 59 Earth days.GeologyMariner 10 gave us a wealth of information around Mercury when it approached the planet in 1974 and 1975. Because Mercury has no water and barely any atmosphere, no erosion has taken sit on its surface. We see Mercury much the way it was soon after it formed. CoreWe learned that Mercury has an extremely weak magnetic fi eld, which could indicate a hot met on the wholeic core, such as molten iron. Geologists think Mercury may be the most iron-rich planet in the solar system. CrustMercurys crust seems to be silicate, like that of Earth.CratersThe planets surface, viewed for the first time via Mariners cameras, is covered by craters. The battering occurred during the early flowing of the solar system when clumps of material were ramming into each other to form the planets. AtmosphereMercury doesnt have what we think of as an atmospherethat is, a gasified envelope that produces clouds and weather or protects the surface of the planet from some of the harmful solar radiation. The weak magnetic field on Mercury captures only the barest sensible trace of charged particles from the Sun. VenusShrouded in the cloak of mystery, Venus, our nearest planetary neighbor, takes the name of the Roman goddess of love. For some unknown reason, Venus rotates on its axis in retrogradethat is, in the reverse direction of its revolution around the Sun.GeologyGeologically, Venus appears to have some similarities to Earth. Its crust is probably granitic, overlying a basaltic pall and a iron-nickel core. The geologic activity that we are familiar with on Earth seems not to exist on Venus, except for the presence two volcanoes along a fault line.... ...p17Uranus19.1884 years16 hours14.544.1015Neptunegod of the deep blue sea30.06165 years18 hours17.233.888netherworldgod of the underworld39.44248 years6.4 days.002?0.12-0.301* AU = Astronomical Unit (Earth = 1)ConclusionWe know more and more all the time about our own solar system. During the past 15 years, space probes such as the Mariner and Voyager missions have given us tremendous detail about all the planets in this system. Tiny by comparison to the Milky Way, our solar system is awesome, nevertheless, when considered in human scale.