Investigating the

Solar System

This Workbook belongs to:

___Teachers Version___

Our Local Star: The Sun

Location in The Solar System

Interesting Facts
1. _______The Sun is at the center of ________
____________the Solar System_____________
_______________________________________
2. __________The Sun is 4.6_______________
____________billion years old______________
_______________________________________
3. _________The Sun is the biggest__________
_________thing in our Solar System________
_______________________________________
4. _________The Sun is a Star ______________

Name of Star:

_____________not a planet_______________
______________________________________

______________THE

SUN____________

5. _____The planets formed as a result_______

_____of the formation of the Sun _______
___________________________________

Draw and Color

your own Sun in the
blank box

Planet #1
Interesting Facts

Location in The Solar System

1. _______Mercury is the closest____________

___________planet to the Sun______________
_______________________________________
2. ________Mercury is the second___________
___________smallest planet________________
_______________________________________
3. _Mercury is covered by craters and it is the__
_____only planet without an atmosphere______
_______________________________________
4. _______Mercury has the shortest__________
Name of Planet:

_________orbit in our Solar System__________

NOTE: Tell the students to write the orbital
period of this planet on the orbital periods
worksheet at the end of this packet.
5. ___1 day on Mercury is longer than its_____
_______year. In fact, it equals 2 years ________

Guide to Coloring the Planet

Look at the planet as having a left side
and a right side. Color the small
circles on the left side white. Then
color the larger shapes on the right
side dark gray. Finally, color the rest
of the planet gray.
What planet is this?

_______________

Mercury___________

Planet #2
Location in The Solar System
Guide to Coloring the Planet
Remember, if we were to see
this planet in the night sky it
would be white, but if we
were on the surface, it would
be yellowish-brown. You are
going to color this planet, as if
we were on the surface.
Think of this planet as having
3 parts: The outside edge, the
middle, and then the rest of
the planet. Color the outside
edge light yellow. Color the
middle dark brown. Finally,
color the rest of the planet an
tan color.
What planet is this?

Name of Planet:

________Venus________

Interesting Facts...
1. _Venus is the hottest planet in our Solar System__________________________________________________________________
2. _Venus is covered with volcanoes and lava flows_________________________________________________________________
3. _The atmosphere on Venus is so thick that a light breeze can blow rocks around!________________________________________
4. _Venus is the closest planet to Earth___________________________________________________________________________
5. _Venus is almost the same size as Earth_________________________________________________________________________
NOTE: Remember to give the students the orbital period of this planet and have them write it on their orbital period worksheet

Planet #3
Location in The Solar System

Interesting Facts
1. ______Earth is the largest of the___________
___________terrestrial planets______________
_______________________________________
2. _____Earth is the only place that __________
____supports life, that we know of so far______
_______________________________________
3. _______More than 2/3 of the Earths _______
_________surface is covered by water________
_______________________________________
4. ___Earth makes one rotation in 24 hrs ___

Name of Planet:

_______and 24 hrs. equal one day.__________

_______________________________________

__________________

Earth__________________

5. ___Earth makes one orbit in 365 days______

______and 356 days equals 1 year.__________
Note: Remember to have the students write the
orbital period on their orbital period worksheet.

Guide to Coloring the Planet

This planet should look familiar. It has
two parts: the land and the sea. The land
Shapes are marked with the number 1
and the sea is marked by the number 2.
Color the land green and the sea blue.
What planet is this?

Planet #4
Location in The Solar System

Interesting Facts
1. __________Mars has been visited_________
________________the most________________
_______________________________________
2. _________Mars has evidence of ___________
____________ancient oceans on it__________
_______________________________________
3. _________Mars is known as the ___________
_______Red Planet because it is rusted______
_______________________________________
4. ___________Mars is the most ____________

Name of Planet:

____________Earthlike planet____________
_______________________________________

_________Mars__________

5. _____Mars has the largest volcano_________

____in the Solar System, it is called________
_________Olympus Mons________________
Note: Remember to have the students
write the orbital period for this planet
on their orbital period worksheet
Guide to Coloring the Planet
Think of this planet as having a left and
right side. Color circles on the left side
white and color the shapes on the right
side black. Then color the rest of the
planet a reddish-brown color.
What planet is this?

Planet #5
Location in The Solar System

Guide to Coloring the Planet

Color this planet by the
numbers on the rows:
Row 1: Light Brown
Row 2: Peach
Row 3: Tan
Row 4: Golden Yellow
Row 5: Light Brown
Row 6: Peach
Row 7: Light Brown
*Row 8: Color the center red,
The circle outside light brown
and the rest of the row tan
Row 9: Peach
Row 10: Light Brown

8
9
10

Name of Planet:

What planet is this?

__________________

Jupiter________________

Interesting Facts...
1. __Jupiter is the biggest planet in the Solar System________________________________________________________________
2. __Jupiters red spot is a storm that is two times bigger than Earth____________________________________________________
3. __Jupiter has four big moons and many small ones _______________________________________________________________
4. __Jupiter makes one rotation in under ten hours__________________________________________________________________
5. __Jupiter takes 12 years to make 1 orbit around the Sun____________________________________________________________
Note: Remember to have the students write the orbital period for this planet on their orbital period worksheet

Planet #6
Location in The Solar System

Interesting Facts
1. _______Saturn is the second______________
_____largest planet in the Solar System_______
_______________________________________
2._______Saturn has a moon with____________
_________an atmosphere, Titan_____________
_______________________________________
3. ______Saturn is so light, if it were_________
_______dumped in water it would float_______
_______________________________________
4. _______Saturns rings are made___________

Name of Planet:

_________of chunks of rock and ice__________

_______________________________________

________________

Saturn__________

5. ________Saturns day is 10 hrs____________

_________and 40 minutes_(Rotation)_________
Note: Remember to have the students write the
orbital period for this planet on their orbital
period worksheet

2
1
3

Guide to Coloring the Planet

4

Color this planet according to the

numbers found on the rows.
Row 1: Tan
Row 2: Yellow
Row 3: Light Brown
Row 4: Tan
Row 5: Light Brown
Row 6: Tan
Row 7: Light Brown
Color the remaining small rows yellow
What planet is this?

6
7

1
2

Planet #7
Location in The Solar System

Interesting Facts
1. ____Uranus has a thick atmosphere, but _____
_________no visible cloud features___________
________________________________________
2. _________Uranus has 27 moons____________
________________________________________
3. ________Uranus is the only planet__________
____________to rotate on its side_____________
________________________________________
4. _______Winter and Summer last ___________
__________21 years on Uranus______________
________________________________________

Name of Planet:

5. _____It takes Uranus 84 Earth years_________

Uranus______________

_____________

______to make one orbit around the Sun_______

Note: Remember to have the students write the
orbital period for this planet on their orbital
period worksheet

6
5
4
3
2
1

Guide to Coloring the Planet

Color this planet by the numbers on the
rows.
Row 1: Lime Green
Row 2: Light Green
Row 3: Light Green
Row 4: Blue Green
Row 5: Blue Green
Row 6: Blue Green
What planet is this?

Planet #8
Location in The Solar System
1

Guide to Coloring the Planet

Color this planet by the
number or letter on the row:

Row 1: Dark Blue

Row 2: Light Blue
Letter A: Dark Blue
Row 3: Sky Blue
Row 4: Blue
Row 5: Dark Blue

3
4
5

What planet is this?

Name of Planet:
________________

Neptune________

Interesting Facts...
1. __ Neptune is the last of the Gas Giants________________________________________________________________________
2. __Neptune has 13 known moons______________________________________________________________________________
3. __Neptune has some of the fastest wind speeds, with winds over 1,000 miles per hour____________________________________
4. __Neptune has dark storms and giant hurricanes__________________________________________________________________
5. __It takes Neptune 176 Earth years to make one orbit around the Sun_________________________________________________
Note: Remember to have the students write the orbital period for this planet on their orbital period worksheet.

Planet #9
Location in The Solar System

Interesting Facts
1. _________Pluto is the smallest ___________
_________planet in our Solar System_________
_______________________________________
2. ______Pluto has never been visited_________
_______________________________________
3. __Pluto is the furthest planet from the Sun,___
_____so it has the longest orbital period ______
NOTE: Remember to have the students write the
orbital period for this planet on their orbital
period worksheet and ask them to answer the
question at the end of their sheet.
4. ____Pluto is neither a terrestrial planet______

Name of Planet:

_____________nor a gas giant______________

5. _____Pluto is known as a double planet_____

________Pluto________

_______because it is almost the same ______

________size as its moon, Charon___________

Guide to Coloring the Planet

Because we know so little about this
planet we dont know the actual color.
But since we know this planet is a
giant ball of ice- color it
gray and purple.
What planet is this?

ORBITAL PERIODS
Directions: On the lines below, write the length of the orbital period for each planet. Be sure to
write your answer in the correct units (see example below).

Mercury:

____ 88 Earth days___________________________________________________

Venus:

____ 225 Earth days__________________________________________________

Earth:

___ 365 Earth days __________________________________________________

Mars:

____687 Earth days__________________________________________________

Jupiter:

____12 Earth years___________________________________________________

Saturn:

____29 Earth years___________________________________________________

Uranus:

____84 Earth years___________________________________________________

Neptune:

____176 Earth years__________________________________________________

Pluto:

____248 Earth years__________________________________________________

After looking at the orbital periods for each planet, what conclusion can you make about the
lengths of the orbital paths and the distance a planet is from the Sun?
_____We are hoping students can conclude that the further a planet is___________________
_____from the Sun, the longer it will take to complete one orbit because___________________
_____it has a longer orbital path to follow.__________________________________________

N am e: ______Teachers Guide______
U nderstanding K eplers Law s of Planetary M otion
Directions: Look at your choices carefully and write the correct answer in the blank provided.
1. Keplers first law says that planets travel in a _______Elliptical_______ path around the sun.

or

Choices:
C ircular

or

Elliptical

Rectangular

2. The diagram s below show M ars in orbit around the Sun.

a. Put an X w here M ars is closest to the Sun
b. Put an X w here M ars receives the strongest gravitational pull from the Sun.
c. Put an X w here M ars is m oving fastest in its orbit.
A.
M ars

X
T he Sun

B.
M ars

X
T he Sun

C.
M ars

X
T he Sun

After looking at your answ ers for the diagram s above, what can you say about Keplers second
law?
The closer planet (in this case M ars) gets to the Sun -- the faster it will m ove. Essentially,
Keplers second law shows us that a planet will receive the strongest gravitational pull from
the Sun w hen its closest to the sun, so as a result w ill m ove faster in its orbital path w hen
closest to the Sun.

3. Why will Jupiter take much longer to orbit the Sun than Mercury? (Look at the diagram
below for help)

Mercury

Jupiter

The Sun
Not to Scale

Jupiter is further away from the Sun so it has a longer orbital path to follow than Mercury.
In addition to having a longer orbital path, because Jupiter it is further away from the Sun
it receives a weaker gravitational pull from the Sun causing it to move slower.

4. Carefully look at the diagram below. Use the diagram to help you circle the correct answer:

Earth

Jupiter

The Sun
Not to Scale

Based on the position of Earth in the diagram, how long would it take Earth to
pass Jupiter?
a. Less than one year
b. Every year
c. More than one year
NOTE: It takes Earth one year to revolve completely around the Sun, and it takes Jupiter 12
years because it is much farther from the Sun (see previous question). Since Earth and
Jupiter are on opposite sides of the Sun in the diagram, it will take less than a year for Earth
to catch up and pass Jupiter. If the diagram showed Earth and Jupiter aligned to begin with,
then it would take more than one year for Earth to pass it because when Earth returned to the
same spot one year later, Jupiter will have shifted some (about 1/12th of a revolution),
requiring Earth to travel a bit further to catch up.

Name: ________Teachers Guide_______________

How well have you learned about our Solar System?

Directions: Write the name of each planet on the correct line in the diagram
Earth Venus Uranus Mars Jupiter Saturn Pluto Mercury Neptune Earth Venus Uranus Mars Jupiter Saturn Pluto Mercury
V
en
us
U
ra
1. ___Mercury__ 3. ___Earth__
5.____Jupiter___ 7. ___Uranus____
9.____Pluto_____
n
us
M
ar
s
J
u
pi
te
r
Sa
tu
rn
Pl
ut
8. ___Neptune___
2. ____Venus_____ 4. ______Mars____ 6.___Saturn______
o
M
er
c
ur
y
N Uranus Jupiter Saturn Pluto Mercury Mars Neptune Earth Venus Uranus Mars Jupiter Saturn Pluto Mercury Neptune Earth
ep

Sun

V
en
us
U
ra
n
us
M
ar
s
J
u
pi
te
r
Sa
tu
rn
Pl
ut
o
M
er
c
ur
y
N

Name: ______Teachers Guide___________

Date: ______________________________
How well have you learned about our Solar System?

1. What are the two different TYPES of planets in our Solar System?

There are two types of planets in our Solar System, the first 4 are
called the rock or terrestrial planets and the next four are called the
gas giants. Pluto is the only planet does not fall into either category.
2. The path a planet travels around the sun is called a ________orbit__________.
3. What is it called when a planet spins on its axis?

_____When a planet spins on its axis, it is rotating________________________

4. Which planet completes its orbit in the shortest amount of time: Mercury or Pluto?

_____Mercury____________________________________________________
Why does this planet complete its orbit in the shortest amount of time?
____Mercury completes its orbit in the shortest amount of time because it is closer to

the Sun than Pluto and as a result has a shorter distance to travel_____________.

Multiple Choice:
5. What is at the center of our Solar System?
a. Mercury
b. Mars

c. The Sun

d. Pluto
6. What is the hottest planet in our solar system?
a. Earth

b. Venus

c. Saturn
d. The Sun
7. Which planet rotates on its side?

a. Uranus
b. Jupiter
c. Mercury
d. Mars
8. What is the biggest planet in the Solar System?
a. Venus
b. Uranus

c. Jupiter
d. Earth
9. What planet would float if you put it in water?
a. Venus
b. Mars

c. Saturn

d. Uranus
10. What is the biggest rock planet?
a. Mercury

b. Earth

c. Saturn
d. Pluto

11. What planet has a surface that most resembles the moon?
a. Jupiter

b. Mercury
c. Pluto
d. Neptune
12. Which planet has a Great Red Spot?

a. Jupiter
b. Earth
c. Neptune
d. Mercury
13. What is the smallest planet in our solar system?
a. Venus
b. Mercury

c. Pluto

d. Saturn