York University Presents…

In collaboration with the Astronomical Observatory

A Tour Through

the Solar System

The Sun

Centre of it All

The Sun

Centre of it All

The Sun

Surface Temperature:

One day:

5777 K

~25 Earth days

The Sun

Centre of it All

S o l a r E c l i p s e

The Sun

Mercury

Closest to the Sun

Mercury

Mission:

Arrival:

Moons:

Solar day:

One Year:

Messenger

2011

0

2 Mercury years

~88 Earth days

Mercury

Closest to the Sun

Mercury

Transit of Mercury on May 7, 2003

MercurySunspot

Venus

Brightest in the Sky

Venus

Mission:

Arrival:

Moons:

Solar day:

One Year:

Venus Express

Now!

0

~1/2 Venus year

~225 Earth days

Venus

Brightest in the Sky

Venus

Exaggerated 3-D Reconstruction of Venus’ Surface

Sif MonsVires Akka Chasm

Venus

Brightest in the Sky

VenusFrom Earth, Venus appears to have phases like the moon.

Swedish 1m Solar Telescope08Jun2004 06:18:54 UT

Venus’ Atmosphere

Venus(The Transit)

Earth

The Planet of Life

Earth

The Planet of Life

Earth

Missions:

Moons:

Solar day:

One Year:

Many!

1 + …

24 hours

365.24 Earth days

Earth

The Planet of Life

EarthAnd Moon System

Earth

The Planet of Life

Earth(Meteors and Meteorites)

Barringer Crater

Chondrite Iron

Mars

Warrior in Red

Mars

Mars: August 2004

Missions:

Arrival:

Moons:

One day:

One Year:

Every ~2 years

Now!

2

24.62 hours

~687 Earth days

Mars

Warrior in Red

2-D Map of Mars

Warrior in Red

Argyre Basin

Warrior in Red

OlympusMons

Valles Marineris

Valles Candor Chasma

Mars

Mars

Warrior in Red

Mars

Mars Express

first colour Spirit image

(Explorations)

Phoenix Lander + Parachute imaged by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter

Ice a few cm under Mars’ surface exposed by the Phoenix lander’s jets?

Mars

Warrior in Red

Mars(Moons)

Deimos

Phobos

Asteroids

A Belt in Space

Asteroids

A Belt in SpaceIda

Dactyl

Gaspra

Mathilde

Eros

Itokawa

Jupiter

King of the Night

Jupiter

Mission:

Arrival:

Moons:

One day:

One Year:

Juno

2016

63 (for now)

~10 hours

~12 Earth years

Jupiter

King of the Night

Jupiter

Voyager Resolution Galileo ResolutionGreat Red Spot

King of the Night

The 4 Galilean Moons

ThebesAmalthea

Metis

(Moons)

Jupiter

King of the Night

Jupiter(Moons) - Callisto

King of the Night

(Moons) - Europa

King of the Night

(Moons) - Ganymede

Osiris Crater

King of the Night

(Moons) - Io

Saturn

Lord of the Rings

Saturn

Mission:

Arrival:

Moons:

One day:

One Year:

Cassini

Now!

60 (for now)

10 2/3 hours

~30 Earth years

Saturn

Lord of the Rings

Saturn

Saturn

Lord of the Rings

Saturn(Moons)

Lord of the Rings

DioneEnceladus

Iapetus

Lord of the Rings

MimasRhea

Phoebe

Lord of the Rings

Titan: the only moon

with an atmosphereTethys

Image of Titan’s surface taken from the Huygens lander

in 2005.

Those aren’t rocks; they’re

ice blocks!

Titan is an ice desert moon: it’s very cold, but too warm

for liquid methane. Its surface has

dry methane streambeds

except at the poles, where

there are methane lakes:

Uranus

Shakespeare’s Muse

Uranus

Mission:

Arrival:

Moons:

One day:

One Year:

Voyager 2

1986

27 (for now)

~17 hours

~84 Earth years

NeptuneA “Watery”

Grave

Neptune

Mission:

Date:

Moons:

One day:

One Year:

Neptune Orbiter +Triton lander/probe?

2026?

13 (for now)

~16 hours

~165 Earth years

NeptuneA “Watery”

Grave

Neptune

Rings of Neptune

NeptuneA “Watery”

Grave

(Moons)

Despina Galatea LarissaNaiad

NereidProteus Thalassa

NeptuneA “Watery”

Grave

(Moons - Triton)

Neptune

Pluto

The Most Debated

Mission:

Arrival:

Moons:

One day:

One Year:

New Horizons

2015

3

~6.4 Earth days

~248 Earth years

Pluto

Pluto

The Most Debated

Pluto

The Most Debated

Pluto

Pluto

Pluto

The Most Debated

(moon – Charon)Pluto

Kuiper Belt dwarf planet

Eris

and its moon

Dysnomia

Kuiper Belt Objects

Edge of the SystemArtist’s View

(Sedna)

Kuiper Belt Objects

Edge of the System

Comet HalleyComet Hyakutake - 1996

Heart of Wild2

(Comets)

The Solar System

(As a Whole)

-Mercury: 0.8 yards

-Venus: 1.4 yards

-Earth: 2 yards

-Mars: 3 yards

-Asteroid Belt: 4-8 yards

-Jupiter: 10.5 yards diameter 1/16”

19 yards 38 yards 60 yards 79 yards

-Voyager 1 is well out of the parking lot

Sun: goal linediameter 2/3”

These facts and figuresCourtesy of solarsystem.nasa.gov/