The Solar System

& its Origins

 DESCARTES
THEORY OF
VORTEX/VERTICES
PLANETARY
COLLISION
THEORY/BUFFON’S
CAPTURE THEORY
COLLISION THOERY

JEAN-JEFFREY’S
SOLAR NEBULAR TIDAL THEORY
THEORY

KANT-LAPLACE GAS CLOUD

NEBULAR THEORY THEORY
Planets are formed in
the collision of the
sun and a giant
comet.
It is a theory stating that there was a
time before, the planets and the
moons were wandering in the space,
and the sun’s gravity pulled the
planets in such, it reached the
position in the recent times. The
moons were pulled by the planet’s
gravity.
Proposed by Immanuel Kant and
Pierre Simon Laplace where a great
cloud of gas and dust called nebula,
begins to collapse because of
gravitational pull. As the cloud
contracted, it spun more rapidly.
Proposed by Sir James Hopwood
Jeans and Harold Jeffreys stating
that planets were formed from the
substance that was torn out from the
sun. As a speeding massive star
passed near the sun, it pulled off the
material due to gravitational force.
This theory states that an explosion
if a star SUPERNOVA might have
caused the dust and gas cloud to
collapse forming of the sun and the
planets.
 What’s in Our Solar System?

• Our
The Solar
eight planets
System ofconsists
the Solar
of aSystem
central are
star
(the
namedSun),
forthe
Greek
eight
and
planets
Roman orbiting
Gods and
the sun,
moons,
Goddesses.
asteroids, comets, meteors,
interplanetary gas, dust, and all the “space”
in between them.
Eight planets of the solar system:
– Mercury -
– Venus
– Earth
– Mars
– Jupiter
– Saturn
– Uranus
– Neptune
8 PLANETS OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM
With the exception of Earth, all of the planets in our
solar system have names from Greek or Roman
mythology. This tradition was continued when
Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto were discovered in
more modern times.
• Mercury is the god of commerce, travel
and thievery in Roman mythology. The
planet probably received this name because
it moves so quickly across the sky.
• Venus is the Roman goddess of love and
beauty. The planet is aptly named since it
makes a beautiful sight in the sky, with only
the Sun and the Moon being brighter.
• Earth is the only planet whose English
name does not derive from Greek/Roman
mythology. The name derives from Old
English and Germanic. There are, of
course, many other names for our planet in
other languages.
• Mars is the Roman god of War. The planet
probably got this name due to its red color.
• Jupiter was the King of the Gods in Roman mythology,
making the name a good choice for what is by far the
largest planet in our solar system.
• Saturn is the Roman god of agriculture.
• Uranus is the ancient Greek deity of the Heavens, the
earliest supreme god.
• Neptune, was the Roman god of the Sea. Given the
beautiful blue color of this planet, the name is an
excellent choice!
• Pluto is the Roman god of the underworld in Roman
mythology. Perhaps the planet received this name
because it's so far from the Sun that it is in perpetual
darkness.
The Relative Size of the Planets in
the Solar System
 The Sun
• The sun’s energy comes from
nuclear fusion (where hydrogen is
converted to helium) within its
core. This energy is released from
the sun in the form of heat and
light.
• Remember: Stars produce light.
Planets reflect light.
• A star’s temperature determines its
“color.” The coldest stars are red.
The hottest stars are blue.
 The 8 Planets of the Solar System

• Planets are classified according to

composition and size. There are two main
categories of planets:

– Terrestrial planets or small rocky planets

(Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, and Pluto)
– Jovian planets or gas giants (Jupiter,
Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune)
 Characteristics of Small Rocky
Planets

• They are made up mostly of rock and metal.

• They are very heavy.
• They move slowly in space.
• They have no rings and few moons (if any).
• They have a diameter of less than 13,000
km.
Mercury
• Mercury has a revolution
period of 88 days. Mercury
has extreme temperature
fluctuations, ranging from
800F (daytime) to -270F
(nighttime).
• Even though it is the closest
planet to the sun, Scientists
believe there is ICE on
Mercury! The ice is
protected from the sun’s heat
by crater shadows.
 Venus
• Venus is the brightest object
in the sky after the sun and
moon because its atmosphere
reflects sunlight so well.
People often mistake it for a
star.
• Its maximum surface
temperature may reach 900F.
• Venus has no moons and takes
225 days to complete an orbit.
 Earth
• Earth is the only planet
known to support living
organisms.
• Earth’s surface is composed
of 71% water.
– Water is necessary for life on
Earth.
– The oceans help maintain
Earth’s stable temperatures.
• Earth has one moon and an
oxygen rich atmosphere.
Earth’s Moon

• It takes the moon approximately 29 days to

complete one rotation. The same side of the moon
always faces us.
• The moon’s surface is covered in dust and rocky
debris from meteor impacts. It has no water or
atmosphere.
• The moon reflects light from the sun onto the earth’s
surface.
 Mars
• Like Earth, Mars has ice caps
at its poles.
• Mars has the largest volcano
in our solar system: Olympus
Mons. Olympus Mons is
approximately 15 miles high.
• Mars appears red because of
iron oxide, or rust, in its soil.
• Mars has two moons and
takes about two years to
complete an orbit.
 Pluto
• Pluto has only one moon
and takes about 249 years to
orbit the sun.
• Part of Pluto’s orbit passes
inside that of Neptune, so at
times Neptune is the planet
farthest from the sun.
• Pluto was located and
named in 1930, but today
Pluto is no longer
considered a
planet.
 Characteristics of Gas Giants

• They are made up mostly of gases

(primarily hydrogen & helium).
• They are very light for their size.
• They move quickly in space.
• They have rings and many moons.
• They have a diameter of less than 48,000
km
 Jupiter
• Jupiter is the largest and
most massive planet.
• It’s diameter is 11 times
bigger than that of the
Earth’s.
• It takes about 12 years for
Jupiter to orbit the sun.
• Jupiter has 16 known
moons.
• Known to have the
strongest gravitational
pull
 • Saturn is composed almost
Saturn entirely of hydrogen and
helium.
• Saturn has many rings made
of ice. Saturn’s rings are
very wide. They extend
outward to about 260,000
miles from the surface but
are less than 1 mile thick.
• Saturn has 18 known moons,
some of which orbit inside
the rings!
• It takes Saturn about 30
years to orbit the sun.
 Uranus
• Uranus is blue in
color due to methane
gas in its atmosphere.
• Uranus has 11 dark
rings surrounding it.
• Uranus has 21 known
moons and takes 84
years to complete one
orbit.
Neptune
• Neptune has the fastest
winds in the solar
system: up to 2,000
km/hr.
• Neptune is also blue in
color due to methane gas
in its atmosphere.
• Neptune takes 165 years
to orbit the sun and has 8
moons.
Other classifications of planets based on their
positions in relative to the sun and earth:

Position relative to the sun:

 Inner planets – MVEM

 Outer planets – JSUN
 Asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter form the
boundary between the inner and the outer
planets.
Other classifications of planets based on their
positions in relative to the sun and earth:

Position relative to the earth:

 Inferior planets – Located inside the orbit of the

earth (Mercury and Venus)

 Superior planets – Located outside the orbit of the

earth (Mars, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune)
 REFERENCES
Earth and Life Science Textbook (Senior High School) PHOENIX publishing
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mechanical_explanations_of_gravitation#Vortex

https://starchild.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/StarChild/questions/question48.html

http://classroom.jc-
schools.net/collinsj/science/GORDON%20SOLAR%20SYSTEM.ppt

https://www.pmfias.com/solar-system-formation-nebular-theory-of-laplace-
milky-way-galaxy/

http://www.daviddarling.info/images2/near_collision_of_Sun_and_another_star
.jpg

file:///C:/Users/PC/Downloads/earthandlifescience-universeanditsorigins-
180819013145.pdf