Small Bodies in the Solar System

Multiple Select

The Solar System contains

• 8 planets

• milky way

• the universe

• 4 rocky planets and 4 gas planets

Match

Match the following

Earth

Mars

Saturn

Jupiter

Sun

• Earth

• Mars

• Saturn

• Jupiter

• Sun

Drag and Drop

Which are the four terrestrial planets?​​

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Drag these tiles and drop them in the correct blank above

Mercury

Venus

Earth

Mars

Saturn

Neptune

Sun

Moons

• Moons are smaller celestial objects that

orbit planets. Scientists collect data
about their physical properties and
motions by using telescopes and
satellites.

• The largest moon is Ganymede, which

orbits Jupiter. Earth’s moon is the fifth-
largest in our solar system. Many of the
moons in our solar system are larger
than Pluto, which is no longer classified
as a planet and is now considered a
dwarf planet.

Meteoroids and
Asteroids

Comets

• Comets are small bodies of ice

and dust that formed near
Neptune when the solar system
was first forming. Neptune has a
very high mass that influences
the orbits of these comets,
making them elliptical. When
comets are closest to the Sun in
their orbit, their ice vaporizes,
creating the tail we see as they
pass over us in the night sky

Draw

Draw an elliptical orbit around the sun for a comet.

Match

Match the following

• comet

• asteroid

• meteor

• meteoroid

• meteorite

icy body that releases gas as it orbits

rocky body that orbits the sun

lights up when it enters the atmosphere

rocky fragment of an asteroid

meteor fragment that reaches the ground

• icy body that releases gas as it orbits

• rocky body that orbits the sun

• lights up when it enters the atmosphere

• rocky fragment of an asteroid

• meteor fragment that reaches the ground

DISTANCE FROM THE SUN AND ORBITAL PATH

The farther the planet is from the sun the longer it takes to
revolve around the sun.

The orbital path is not a perfect circle but an ellipse.

THE SOLAR SYSTEM
CONSISTS OF:

The sun, moon, Earth, 7 other
planets and their moons. As
well as meteoroids, asteroids
and comets.

Each body has its own
characteristics and features.