Teaching
the Solar System
|
Solar
System Scale Model Meta Page A comprehension
list of links about scale model solar systems and how to make them.
|
The
Nine Planets (Bill Arnett/SEDS) The definitive site on the solar system.
Comprehensive information, pics, and useful links. |
3. Other Interesting Solar System Links
| StarChild Project:Connecting NASA and the K12 Classroom -Send your students here. Cool on-line activities, information and video about the sun, planets, and stars. Live From Earth and Mars University of Washington site with lessons that can be used in the classroom.Astronomical Calendar Make a calendar based on the changing position of the sun throughout the year Make a Time Line of the Evolution of the Solar System from the big bang, to the present, to the death of the sun. Earth
and Moon Viewer This Swiss site lets you view
the Earth from over 100 satellites in orbit around the Earth. |
Classroom Models An obvious starting point to studying the solar system is to make a model at your school or in your classroom. Unfortunately because the planets are so small, and the distances between them so large, it is not practical to have the sizes of the planets scaled the same as the distances. Make the earth a modest 1/2 inch and Pluto ends up 3.7 miles away
Planets sizes to scale:
With primary students it would be best to hand out dittos with the planets already drawn to scale. The students can cut these out and color them to match the planet they represent. They can then paste or staple these to a strip of paper in order from the sun.
With intermediate students
Option 1. Give them the scaled sizes of the planets (third column in table below) and have them use compasses to construct their own planets. For the smallest planets they should just draw the circle freehand. The students can cut these out and color them to match the planet they represent. They can then paste or staple these to a strip of paper in order from the sun.
Option 2. A more challenging task would be to give them a list of the actual sizes of the planets (first two columns of the following chart). Have them decide on a workable scale and determine the sizes each planet would be. If you want to try other scales go to Build a Solar System
|
Planets
|
Actual Diameter (metric) |
One Possible Scale Diameter |
| Sun |
1,390,000 kilometers
|
139 centimeters
|
| Mercury |
4,878 kilometers
|
0.5 centimeters
|
| Venus |
12,100 kilometers
|
1.2 centimeters
|
| Earth |
12,756 kilometers
|
1.28 centimeters
|
| Mars |
6,794 kilometers
|
0.67 centimeters
|
| Jupiter |
142,984 kilometers
|
14.3 centimeters
|
| Saturn |
120,536 kilometers
|
12.0 centimeters
|
| Uranus |
51,118 kilometers
|
5.1 centimeters
|
| Neptune |
49,528 kilometers
|
4.9 centimeters
|
| Pluto |
2,246 kilometers
|
0.24 centimeters
|
| earth's moon |
3.400 kilometers
|
.34 centimeters
|
Planet distances from the sun to scale
If you use the one to a billion scale that works great for planet sizes unfortunately Pluto ends up almost 6 km. (3.7 miles) away. To find a good scale to use in your class go to this site: Build a Solar System For a Pluto distance of about 40 feet, try a sun size of 3 mm.
Once you have the scale distances, hang one set of planets at their appropriate distances from the sun.
|
Planets
|
Distance (metric)
|
Distance (English)
|
| Sun | ||
| Mercury |
12.4 cm.
|
4.9
|
| Venus |
23.3
|
9.2 inches
|
| Earth |
32.2
|
1'.69"
|
| Mars |
49.1
|
1'7.3"
|
| Jupiter |
1.67
|
5'6.02
|
| Saturn |
3.08
|
10'1.08
|
| Uranus |
6.19
|
20' 3.56
|
| Neptune |
9,70
|
31' 9.84
|
| Pluto |
12.75
|
41'9.75
|
| earth's moon |
37.8 cm.
|
1' 2.9
|
|
|