Solar system: describing the planets by size and in the correct order. Planets of the Solar System: eight and one

Have you asked yourself the question: what do the planets look like in comparison with each other?! - I personally more than once, but at the same time I could not visually imagine how big the difference between them is. I have always been interested in comparing them with each other, observing at least approximate proportions... I took a break from a large number of images, and came across a picture that is close in its parameters to the required one. On it I tried to show how small our planet is compared to the Sun, but the most interesting thing is that there are a huge number of stars much larger than the Sun, tens of thousands or more times. This article presents a visual comparison of the sizes of the planets of the solar system and some famous stars with each other, as well as their main physical characteristics.

1. Mercury is the smallest terrestrial planet. Its radius is only 2439.7 ± 1.0 km. The planet's mass is 3.3022×1023 kg (0.055 Earth's). The average density of Mercury is quite high - 5.43 g/cm³, which is only slightly less than the density of the Earth (0.984 Earth's). Surface area (S) - 6.083 × 1010 km³ (0.147 Earth).

2. Mars is the fourth most distant from the Sun (after Mercury, Venus and Earth) and the seventh largest (exceeding only Mercury in mass and diameter) planet of the solar system. The mass of Mars is 10.7% of the mass of the Earth (6.423 × 1023 kg versus 5.9736 × 1024 kg for the Earth), the volume is 16.318 × 1010 km³, which is about 0.15 the volume of the Earth, and the average linear diameter is 0.53 diameters Earth (6800 km). Surface area (S) - 144,371,391 km² (0.283 Earth).

3. Venus is the second inner planet of the Solar System with an orbital period of 224.7 Earth days. Volume (V) - 9.38 × 1011 km³ (0.857 Earth). Mass (m) - 4.8685×1024 kg (0.815 Earth). Average density (ρ) - 5.24 g/cm³. Surface area (S) - 4.60×108 km² (0.902 Earth). The average radius is 6051.8 ± 1.0 km.

4. Earth is the third planet from the Sun in the Solar System, the largest in diameter, mass and density among the terrestrial planets. The average radius is 6,371.0 km. Surface area (S) - 510,072,000 km². Volume (V) - 10.832073×1011 km³. Weight (m) - 5.9736×1024 kg. Average density (ρ) - 5.5153 g/cm³.

5. Neptune is the eighth and most distant planet of the solar system. Neptune is also the fourth largest planet in diameter and third largest in mass. Neptune's mass is 1.0243 × 1026 kg, which is 17.2 times, and the diameter of the equator is 3.9 times greater than that of the Earth. The average radius is 24552.5 ± 20 km. Surface area (S) - 7.6408×109 km². Volume (V) - 6.254 × 1013 km³. Average density (ρ) - 1.638 g/cm³.

6. Uranus is the seventh planet in terms of distance from the Sun, the third in diameter and the fourth in terms of mass in the solar system. The average radius is 25266 km. Surface area (S) - 8.1156×109 km². Volume (V) - 6.833×1013 km³. Weight (m) - 8.6832×1025 kg. Average density (ρ) - 1.27 g/cm³.

7. Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest planet in the Solar System after Jupiter. Saturn, as well as Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune, are classified as gas giants. Average radius - 57316 ± 7 km. Surface area (S) - 4.27 × 1010 km². Volume (V) - 8.2713×1014 km³. Weight (m) - 5.6846×1026 kg. Average density (ρ) - 0.687 g/cm³.

8. Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun, the largest in the Solar System. Along with Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, Jupiter is classified as a gas giant. Average radius – 69173 ± 7 km. Surface area (S) - 6.21796×1010 km². Volume (V) - 1.43128×1015 km³. Weight (m) - 1.8986×1027 kg.

9. Wolf 359 (CN Leio) is a star approximately 2.4 parsecs or 7.80 light years from the Solar System. It is one of the closest stars to the Sun; it is known that only the Alpha Centauri system and Barnard's star are closer to it. In the constellation Leo it is located next to the ecliptic. It is an extremely faint red dwarf, not visible to the naked eye, and is a flare star. Mass - 0.09-0.13 M☉ (M☉ - solar mass). Radius - 0.16-0.19 R☉ (R☉ - solar radius).

10. The Sun is the only star in the Solar System around which other objects of this system revolve: planets and their satellites, dwarf planets and their satellites, asteroids, meteoroids, comets and cosmic dust. The mass of the Sun is 99.866% of the total mass of the entire Solar System. Solar radiation supports life on Earth (photons are necessary for the initial stages of the photosynthesis process) and determines climate. Of the stars currently known to belong to the 50 closest star systems within 17 light years, the Sun is the fourth brightest star (its absolute magnitude is +4.83m). The Sun's mass is 333,000 times that of the Earth. More than 99% of the mass of the solar system is contained in the sun. Most individual stars in the Universe have a mass between 0.08 and 50 solar masses, but the mass of black holes and entire galaxies can reach millions and billions of solar masses. The average diameter is 1.392 × 109 m (109 diameters of the Earth). Equatorial radius - 6.955×108 m. Volume - 1.4122×1027 m³ (1,303,600 Earth volumes). Mass - 1.9891×1030 kg (332,946 Earth masses). Surface area - 6.088 × 1018 m² (11,900 Earth areas).

11. Sirius (lat. Sirius), α Canis Major, is the brightest star in the night sky. Sirius can be observed from any region of the Earth, with the exception of its northernmost regions. Sirius is 8.6 light years away from the Solar System and is one of the closest stars to us. It is a main sequence star of spectral class A1. Initially, Sirius consisted of two powerful blue stars of spectral class A. The mass of one component was 5 solar masses, the second - 2 solar masses (Sirius B and Sirius A). Then the more powerful and massive component Sirius B burned out and became a white dwarf. Now the mass of Sirius A is approximately twice the mass of the Sun, Sirius B is slightly less than the mass of the Sun.

12. Pollux (β Gem / β Gemini / Beta Gemini) is the brightest star in the constellation Gemini and one of the brightest stars in the sky. Weight - 1.7±0.4 M☉. Radius - 8.0 R☉.

13. Arcturus (α Boo / α Boötes / Alpha Boötes) is the brightest star in the constellation Bootes and the northern hemisphere and the fourth brightest star in the night sky after Sirius, Canopus and the Alpha Centauri system. The apparent magnitude of Arcturus is −0.05m. Because Alpha Centauri consists of two bright stars (−0.01m and +1.34m) that are closer together than the resolution limit of the human eye, it appears brighter to the naked eye than Arcturus. Arcturus is the second brightest star visible at northern latitudes (after Sirius) and is the brightest star north of the celestial equator. Weight - 1–1.5 M☉. Radius - 25.7 ± 0.3 R☉.

14. Aldebaran (α Tau / α Tauri / Alpha Tauri) is the brightest star in the constellation Taurus and one of the brightest stars in the night sky. Weight - 2.5±0.15 M☉. Radius - 38±0.36 R☉.

15. Rigel is a bright near-equatorial star, β Orionis. Blue-white supergiant. The name means "foot" in Arabic (referring to Orion's foot). It has a visual magnitude of 0.12m. Rigel is located approximately 870 light years from the Sun. Its surface temperature is 11,200 K (spectral class B8I-a), its diameter is about 95 million km (that is, 68 times larger than the Sun) and its absolute magnitude is −7m; its luminosity is 85,000 times higher than the Sun, which means it is one of the most powerful stars in the Galaxy (in any case, the most powerful of the brightest stars in the sky, since Rigel is the closest star with such enormous luminosity). Weight - 17 M☉. Radius - 70 R☉.

16. Antares (α Sco / Alpha Scorpii) is the brightest star in the constellation Scorpio and one of the brightest stars in the night sky, a red supergiant. In Russia it is better visible in the southern regions, but is also observed in the central regions. Enters Bubble I - the region adjacent to the Local Bubble, which includes the Solar System. Antares is an M-class supergiant, with a diameter of approximately 2.1×109 km. Antares is approximately 600 light years away from Earth. Its visible luminosity is 10,000 times that of the sun, but given that the star emits much of its energy in the infrared, the total luminosity is 65,000 times that of the sun. The star's mass ranges from 15 to 18 solar masses. The huge size and relatively small mass indicate that Antares has a very low density. Weight - 15-18 M☉. Radius - 700 R☉.

17. Betelgeuse is a red supergiant (α Orionis), a semi-regular variable star, the brightness of which varies from 0.2 to 1.2 magnitude and averages about 0.7m. According to modern estimates, the angular diameter of Betelgeuse is about 0.055 arcseconds. The distance to the star, according to various estimates, ranges from 495 to 640 light years. This is one of the largest stars known to astronomers: if it were placed instead of the Sun, then at its minimum size it would fill the orbit of Mars, and at its maximum it would reach the orbit of Jupiter. If we take 570 light years as the distance to Betelgeuse, then its diameter will exceed the diameter of the Sun by approximately 950-1000 times. Betelgeuse has a color index (B-V) of 1.86 and is thought to have a mass of about 20 solar masses. At its minimum size, Betelgeuse's brightness exceeds the brightness of the Sun by 80 thousand times, and at its maximum - 105 thousand times. Weight - 18-19 M☉. Radius - ~1000 R☉.

18. Mu Cephei (μ Cep / μ Cephei), also known as Herschel's Garnet Star, is a red supergiant star located in the constellation Cepheus. It is one of the largest and most powerful (total luminosity 350,000 times higher than the Sun) stars in our Galaxy and belongs to the spectral class M2Ia. The star is approximately 1650 times larger than the Sun (radius 7.7 AU) and if placed in its place, its radius would be between the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn. Mu Cephei could contain a billion suns and 2.7 quadrillion earths. If the Earth were the size of a golf ball (4.3 cm), Mu Cephei would be the width of 2 Golden Gate Bridges (5.5 km). Weight - 25 M☉. Radius -1650 R☉.

19. VV Cephei (lat. VV Cephei) is an eclipsing double star of the Algol type in the constellation Cepheus, which is located at a distance of about 3000 light years from Earth. Component A is the third largest star currently known to science and the second largest star in the Milky Way galaxy (after VY Canis Majoris and WOH G64). The M2 class red supergiant VV Cephei A is the second largest in our Galaxy (after the hypergiant VY Canis Majoris). Its diameter is 2,644,800,000 km - this is 1600-1900 times greater than the diameter of the Sun, and its luminosity is 275,000-575,000 times greater. The star fills the Roche lobe, and its material flows to the neighboring companion. The speed of gas outflow reaches 200 km/s. It has been established that VV Cephei A is a physical variable pulsating with a period of 150 days. The speed of the stellar wind flowing from the star reaches 25 km/s. Judging by its orbital motion, the mass of the star is about 100 solar, however, its luminosity indicates a mass of 25-40 solar. Weight - 25–40 or 100/20 M☉. Radius - 1600–1900/10 R☉.

20. VY Canis Majoris - a star in the constellation Canis Major, a hypergiant. It is perhaps the largest and one of the brightest known stars. The distance from Earth to VY Canis Majoris is approximately 5000 light years. The radius of the star is from 1800 to 2100 R☉. The diameter of this supergiant is about 2.5-2.9 billion kilometers. The mass of the star is estimated at 30-40 M☉, which indicates the negligible density of the star in its depths.

On a conventional map of the Solar System, the difference in the dimensions of celestial bodies does not seem so significant to us, but if we look in more detail, comparing the sizes of the planets will become a real discovery for us.

The diameter of the Earth is only 12,000 kilometers. For us living here, the distance seems enormous, but the circumference of the Sun is almost 117 times greater! This is despite the fact that by the standards of the Universe it is considered a rather small celestial body.

Comparison of planet sizes with the Sun

Let us consider in more detail the physical and mathematical parameters of each object in order to clearly see their colossal difference (unit of measurement is km).

Comparison of the sizes of the planets of the solar system. Click to enlarge.

1. Mercury. "Dwarf" among all planets. With a radius of about 2.5 thousand and a mass of 3.3x10 23 kg. This is only 0.055 of the Earth. Among other things, their density is almost the same, equal to 5.4 g / cubic meter. cm. Surface area - about 15%.
2. Venus. Girth 6.05 thousand and weight 4.87x10 24 kg it is 20% less. Surface – 4.6x10 8 squares, (10% difference).
3. Earth. Radius - 6.4 thousand, weight 5.98x10 24 kg, area 510 million square meters.
4. Mars. Diameter - 6.8 thousand, that is, almost half of ours. Weight 6.42x10 23 kg forms a tenth of its mass. Surface – 144.37 million squares. The parameters of Mars are superior only to Mercury.
5. Jupiter. Gas giant of the solar system. Its radius is eleven times greater than that of the object, its surface dimensions are 120! Its weight is almost 3.2 green planets.
6. Saturn. It ranks second in size after Jupiter. The girth is four times larger than ours. Regarding the dimensions, the following comparison can be made: the expanses of Saturn will accommodate approximately 10 Earths.
7. Uranus. The radius is almost the same as its neighbor Saturn. Weight 8.68x10 25 kg it is about 14.5 times ahead of the human habitation.
8. Neptune. The area/mass ratio is approximately 15/17, respectively. The diameter of Neptune is 4 Earth equators.

Obviously: the sizes of the planets compared to the Sun are extremely small, but is it true that the famous star is the most gigantic object in the Universe? Let's figure it out further.

Comparison of the sizes of stars and planets

Everyone knows that the Sun is a huge star, the dimensions of which repeatedly exceed those of other celestial bodies. However, there are countless celestial bodies in the Universe, relative to which a star appears as a small point.

Comparison of the sizes of the moons of the solar system. Click to enlarge.

Red dwarfs, such as Centauri and Proxima, are considered the most compact. Differences with the Sun – 78% decreasing. That is, they are slightly larger than Jupiter.

Rigel has a heavier/larger ratio - 17/62, respectively. Do you think this is an impressive figure? Introducing Betelgeuse - it's like 20 Suns. And some objects from the constellation Canis Major are almost 2000 times larger. If they occupied the positions of our luminaries, they could easily reach Saturn.

On March 13, 1781, English astronomer William Herschel discovered the seventh planet of the solar system - Uranus. And on March 13, 1930, American astronomer Clyde Tombaugh discovered the ninth planet of the solar system - Pluto. By the beginning of the 21st century, it was believed that the solar system included nine planets. However, in 2006, the International Astronomical Union decided to strip Pluto of this status.

There are already 60 known natural satellites of Saturn, most of which were discovered using spacecraft. Most of the satellites consist of rocks and ice. The largest satellite, Titan, discovered in 1655 by Christiaan Huygens, is larger than the planet Mercury. The diameter of Titan is about 5200 km. Titan orbits Saturn every 16 days. Titan is the only moon to have a very dense atmosphere, 1.5 times larger than Earth's, consisting primarily of 90% nitrogen, with moderate methane content.

The International Astronomical Union officially recognized Pluto as a planet in May 1930. At that moment, it was assumed that its mass was comparable to the mass of the Earth, but later it was found that Pluto’s mass is almost 500 times less than the Earth’s, even less than the mass of the Moon. Pluto's mass is 1.2 x 10.22 kg (0.22 Earth's mass). Pluto's average distance from the Sun is 39.44 AU. (5.9 to 10 to 12 degrees km), radius is about 1.65 thousand km. The period of revolution around the Sun is 248.6 years, the period of rotation around its axis is 6.4 days. Pluto's composition is believed to include rock and ice; the planet has a thin atmosphere consisting of nitrogen, methane and carbon monoxide. Pluto has three moons: Charon, Hydra and Nix.

At the end of the 20th and beginning of the 21st centuries, many objects were discovered in the outer solar system. It has become obvious that Pluto is only one of the largest Kuiper Belt objects known to date. Moreover, at least one of the belt objects - Eris - is a larger body than Pluto and is 27% heavier. In this regard, the idea arose to no longer consider Pluto as a planet. On August 24, 2006, at the XXVI General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union (IAU), it was decided to henceforth call Pluto not a “planet”, but a “dwarf planet”.

At the conference, a new definition of a planet was developed, according to which planets are considered bodies that revolve around a star (and are not themselves a star), have a hydrostatically equilibrium shape and have “cleared” the area in the area of ​​their orbit from other, smaller objects. Dwarf planets will be considered objects that orbit a star, have a hydrostatically equilibrium shape, but have not “cleared” the nearby space and are not satellites. Planets and dwarf planets are two different classes of objects in the Solar System. All other objects orbiting the Sun that are not satellites will be called small bodies of the Solar System.

Thus, since 2006, there have been eight planets in the solar system: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune. The International Astronomical Union officially recognizes five dwarf planets: Ceres, Pluto, Haumea, Makemake, and Eris.

On June 11, 2008, the IAU announced the introduction of the concept of "plutoid". It was decided to call celestial bodies revolving around the Sun in an orbit whose radius is greater than the radius of Neptune’s orbit, whose mass is sufficient for gravitational forces to give them an almost spherical shape, and which do not clear the space around their orbit (that is, many small objects revolve around them) ).

Since it is still difficult to determine the shape and thus the relationship to the class of dwarf planets for such distant objects as plutoids, scientists recommended temporarily classifying all objects whose absolute asteroid magnitude (brilliance from a distance of one astronomical unit) is brighter than +1 as plutoids. If it later turns out that an object classified as a plutoid is not a dwarf planet, it will be deprived of this status, although the assigned name will be retained. The dwarf planets Pluto and Eris were classified as plutoids. In July 2008, Makemake was included in this category. On September 17, 2008, Haumea was added to the list.

The material was prepared based on information from open sources

The fall of the asteroid Apophis. What consequences can we expect? Where will it fall? When? So, the inhabitants of planet Earth begin to slowly freeze in anticipation of the next approach of the asteroid Apophis to our planet. It is likely that Friday April 13, 2029 may be the last day of modern civilization. Liked this:Like Loading...

Liked this:

The White House presented the Asteroid Hazard Strategy At the end of 2016, the White House released an official document called Detecting and Mitigating the Impact of Earth-bound Near-Earth Objects (DAMIEN), which is translated from English. stands for “Detection and Mitigation of Space Objects Coming Dangerously to Our Planet,” developed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), an interagency working […]

Liked this: