Lesson 4 Page 2
Our planet Earth is joined by seven other planets orbiting around the Sun, each one following its own regular path. The four planets closest to the Sun are called the inner planets – Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars. They are smaller and made mostly of rock and metal.
The next four planets are called the outer planets – Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. They are much larger and sometimes called the “gas giants” because they have very thick atmospheres of gases.
Tiny and faraway is the dwarf planet called Pluto. In 2006, Pluto’s status was changed from a planet, to a dwarf planet. Pluto joined the group of 5 dwarf planets! (You’ll remember that Snow White met seven dwarfs!).
Watch this BrainPOP video to learn more about our solar system.
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Click here to watch the video to learn more about our Solar System.
History Connection
They named them after Roman gods:
- Jupiter, king of the gods
- Mars, the god of war
- Mercury, messenger of the gods
- Venus, the goddess of love and beauty
- Saturn, father of Jupiter and god of agriculture
After the invention of the telescope, three more planets were discovered in our solar system: Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto (which is now considered a dwarf planet). A dwarf planet orbits the sun, but it is so small it cannot clear other objects out of its path (the criteria of a planet).
The moons, the Sun, and the planets all work together to make up our solar system.