Astronomy Today the interest not only of schoolchildren.Discovery, expanding our knowledge of the cosmos, and attract the attention of adults.Interesting facts about the planets are placed in popular magazines.This is not surprising, since the availability of the results of the study of space objects increases the number of the curious who want to learn a little more about the vast expanse of the universe.The following are examples of amazing facts related to the solar system.
Classification
All planets circling in orbits around our star, divided into two types: those relating to the terrestrial and gas giants.They differ in composition, size, and some other characteristics.For terrestrial carry our house, as well as Mercury, Venus and Mars.Most of the listed planets consist of silicates and metals.The size of these cosmic bodies is considerably inferior to the dimensions of the gas giants, which is evident from the title.Among the latter are Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.Basic substances in their composition - hydrogen and helium.Pluto is now deprived of the status of the world and is related to the number of Kuiper belt objects - witnesses ice formation of the solar system, located in the space beyond Neptune.
Conventional surface
In the study of information about gas giants at every step of waiting for fascinating facts.On the giant planets we know a lot, and every detail is amazing in the first place because he always emphasizes a huge difference between them from the earth.
You can start with the fact that on these planets there is no surface in the usual sense.The density here is so low that there is no clear distinction between the atmosphere, mantle and core.The boundary surface of the scientists determined from the pressure: it is where the level is set to one bar.In fact, in this region and extends below the mixture gas.
Lord of the seas
Interesting facts about the planet Neptune explain why she was given such a name.Color space body - saturated blue.Beautiful shade formed by the properties of methane in the atmosphere of a giant cloud: they absorb the red and orange light.Before the final choice of the name was put forward a few more options, but through the efforts of one of the discoverers of the planet Urbena Lavery and director of the laboratory of the Pulkovo N. Struve her name stuck Roman sea-god.
Neptune, like all gas giants have satellites.The largest of these, Triton, no less impressive of the gas giant, though inferior to him in size.The satellite is rotated in the opposite direction around the axis of Neptune, it has atmosphere.On the surface, there are allegedly acting gas geysers.On Triton, a significant part of the landscape formed by ice: methane, ammonia and water.Last at low temperature characteristic of the satellite becomes hard as stone and forms a whole mountain ranges.
Frozen Planet
Uranus with Neptune is one of the ice giants because they, like Triton, contain large amounts of frozen inclusions.It contributes to the interesting facts about the planets.Uranus was the first major discovery of the invention of the telescope.As a result of his discovery was changed view of the structure of the solar system, existed since antiquity.So, interesting facts about the planet Uranus:
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gas giant rotates about an axis in the direction of non-standard: from east to west.This feature besides him in the solar system has only Venus.
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planet's equatorial plane strongly inclined relative to the axis of rotation.The angle between them is greater than 90º, so Uranus spins like a ball that rolls across the floor.The rest of the world are more similar in this sense to the top.
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Like all gas giants, Uranus rotates very quickly.At one turn he needs a little more than 17 hours.
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The planet 27 satellites, all named after characters in Shakespeare and Pope.
first among equals
Interesting facts about the giant planets Saturn and Jupiter are also known in considerable quantity, since they are best studied among the giants of space.Jupiter mass exceeds the Earth 318 times.Its most famous feature - the Great Red Spot, observed since the mid-17th century.According to scientists, it is a huge hurricane-anticyclone.For as long as it is observed, the spot turns white, then again gaining brightness.This happens because of the constant clashes storms in Jupiter's atmosphere.
Saturn is known for its ring system.By the way, they are each a giant, but that Saturn has the brightest.He also has another feature - formed by clouds in the atmosphere of a hexagon.Presumably, this vortex is a result of the difference in the speed of the planet and its rings.Until the end, however, the nature of education is not clear.
Miracles in terrestrial
Interesting facts about the planets closer to our own, somewhat different from the reports of the gas giants because of their different characteristics.At the same time, there are similar moments.For example, Venus, like Uranus rotates counterclockwise.The sun rises in the west of here.But the appeal axis foggy planet spends more time: the length of day exceeds the duration of the year.But the interesting facts about the planet Venus that are not limited to:
- it can be seen with the naked eye twice, morning and evening, after the Sun and Moon is the brightest point in the sky;
- surface of the planet is hidden by dense clouds of observation, do not miss the visible light, mainly because data about Venus obtained by the methods of radar;
- global temperature reaches 480ºC and is kept almost unchanged throughout the year;
- high content of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere creates a greenhouse effect on Venus.
Red
Research neighbor closest to the Earth of space is constantly updated with interesting facts about the planet Mars.To study it in a sense, started even before there was an opportunity to send the first spacecraft: the world of meteorites have been found a few who arrived from Mars.The planet lives up to its name not only color, but also by strong constant dust storms.They last a few months and cover, like World War II, the entire planet.
Mars famous and highest mountain in the solar system.She was named Olympus.It rises above the surface by more than 20 km.
Native house
be wrong listing interesting facts about the planets, to miss Earth.Some of its features include not only the life and the huge area of water surface.It is the only planet whose name does not correspond to any Roman or Greek god.Her companion - the Moon - the largest among all the companions of the terrestrial planets.
many interesting facts about Earth sometimes unknown even to its inhabitants.For example, a person's weight depends on its location: it increases in the South Pacific, and decreases in the south of India.This difference - one of the mysteries of the planet.
Earth's atmosphere protects life on it from the effects of ultraviolet radiation and the solar wind.The gaseous envelope and saves us from falling most meteorites they burn up in the upper layers without causing harm.At the same time every day on the surface of the Blue Planet gets about 100 tons of cosmic dust resulting from collisions of asteroids and meteorites.
However, the most surprising phenomenon of the Earth - it's still a life.The study of a set of facts which had to gather about the universe, scientists, helps to understand how unlikely it is that we exist.Huge space studied space lifeless hope that somewhere far away, perhaps outside the galaxy, there is another civilization, is very small.The desire to find life on other planets, and a deep sense of loneliness (of humanity in the universe) - one of the driving forces motivating astronomers to gather new facts, send spaceships, alien design conditions in the laboratory.
