Your perfect guide to the solar system diagram!

The name solar is from the Latin word ‘Solis.’ The solar system comprises dwarf planets, comets, asteroids, meteoroids, and celestial bodies. The sun exists in the Milky Way Galaxy and takes approximately 230 million years to complete one full round in its circular orbit.

Learning about the solar system is important for a career in meteorology, astronomy, geology and aeronautical engineering among other scientific fields. If you’re also looking to become a teacher or professor of science or geography, begin your journey on this path, here’s a blog on the planets and how to draw solar system diagram.

Classification of the solar system

The sun is the focal point of the solar system and the site of the hydrogen and helium fusion reaction. It emits energy in the form of electromagnetic radiation. As a result, it emits blinding light. The majority of the solar system is made up of a near-vacuum interplanetary medium. Solar flares and coronal mass ejections cause geomagnetic storms. Sounds too intense, right? It intrigues people of all ages to hear about the solar system and which planets come under it.

Inner solar system

The inner solar system is made up of terrestrial planets and asteroid belts. This region is mainly made up of silicates and metals. These bodies are situated closer to the sun than other parts of the solar system. This inner solar system is distinguished by its closeness to the sun (less than 5 AU). The four inner planets are rocky in texture and do not have a ring around them. As a result, their moons may or may not exist. Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars are the four planets in the inner solar system.

Apart from Ceres, other asteroids are known as small solar system bodies of rocky and metallic components. Meteoroids and micrometeoroids are the names given to asteroids that are smaller than one meter in size. Ceres is a giant asteroid sometimes referred to as a dwarf planet. The asteroids are classified into groups and families based on their orbital properties.

Outer solar system

The outer solar system comprises giant planets, moons, centaurs, and short-period comets. Many planets in this region have water, ammonia, and methane, which remain solid due to the low temperature. The four outer giant planets are Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.

Centaurs look like icy comets. They are classified as comets because they form comas approaching the sun. These are some fascinating facts about the outer solar system.

Comets

Comets are celestial bodies composed of massive amounts of volatile ice. They have erratic orbits and create coma as they approach the inner solar system. Their bright, long tail is made of dust and gas. Comets can have a short lifetime (around 200 years) or a long lifetime (thousands of years). Scientists discovered that the Kuiper belt produces short-lived comets, whereas the Oost Cloud produces long-lived comets.

The solar system

Mercury- Mercury is the closest planet to the sun without a natural satellite. It has an iron core with a thin mantle.

Venus- Venus is almost as large as the earth in size and has the hottest surface temperature due to greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

Earth- It is a giant planet with the highest density of the inner planets. It has a liquid hydrosphere and air that contains 21% free oxygen. Plants and animals live on Earth.

Mars- Mars is significantly smaller than both Earth and Venus. The majority of its atmosphere is made up of carbon dioxide. It has volcanoes, rift valleys, and Deimos and Phobos as natural satellites.

Jupiter- Jupiter has cloud bands, the Great Red Spot, and hydrogen and helium. Ganymede is its largest natural satellite.

Saturn- Saturn has a large ring and 82 ice-based natural satellites.

Uranus- Uranus is the lightest of the outer planets, with an axial tilt of more than 90 degrees.

Neptune- Neptune is faintly smaller than Uranus and has 14 moons.

How to draw solar system diagrams?

Now, this is a valid question. How can we draw solar system diagrams? Is there a specific procedure? Here’s the answer.

If students want to learn more about the planetary system and the earth, they must first learn about the solar system. They can use a solar system diagram to determine how far the planets are from the sun.

Step 1- To begin the drawing, start from the left and progress toward the right. First, draw a large yellow circle representing the sun, the largest celestial body in the solar system. Mercury remains the closest to the sun and the smallest in size. Students must draw a small circle next to the sun. After that, they must draw a larger circle next to Mercury. This is Venus. They can use a yellowish-brown color to shade it.

Step 2- Next to Venus, draw green and blue-hued earth larger than the previous planets. The students must now create Mars, a red planet located next to (on the right side of) Earth. Students can do this by drawing a smaller circle in red and orange.

Step 3- The students must draw a large circle next to Mars. They need to color it yellowish-orange. This is Jupiter. Students should now draw a smaller circle next to Jupiter. This is Saturn. Draw a small ring that surrounds it. Saturn can be represented by the colors yellow, grey, brown, and orange.

Step 4- The students can draw Uranus with a ring with a slight tilt around it. It is blue in color and smaller than Saturn. Finally, they must draw a circle with an inclined ring to symbolize Neptune. They can draw orbits around the planets in an elliptical shape with the sun as the center, beginning and ending at the page’s edges.

Key takeaways

• The solar system, with the sun at its center, is one of several planetary systems in the universe.
• The solar system consists of eight planets from which the Earth is known to have life, such as plants and animals.
• Once you know all the planets’ names, drawing the solar system diagrams will be easier.

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FAQs

Q1. How many planets are there in the universe in 2022?

Answer- Scientists confirmed on March 21, 2022, that there are over 5,000 planets beyond our solar system.

Q2. When was the earth discovered?

Answer- The concept of the earth was first mentioned in written form around the 5th century BC in the writings of Greek philosophers.

Q3. Who discovered the solar system?

Answer- Though Galileo Galilei conducted many observations on the solar system, he felt that an astronomer named Nicolaus Copernicus had a better idea.