Explore The Solar System
     


a Virtual Tour

Read To Learn!

by
Dottie Nelson

There are many interesting places to explore in our Solar System and many new and interesting discoveries being made every day.

Fill in the blanks. Click on the links near each question and read to find the answer.

1. Why is Mars called the red planet?

2. Orbits around the sun have different speeds.
How long does it take Mercury to orbit the Sun?
Is this faster or slower than Earth?
3. Why is Venus considered Earth's twin?
4. What is the composition of the ocean of air near the surface of Earth?
5. Does the moon have "earthquakes"? How do we know?
6. What was found on May, 2002 on Mars?
What are the names of the moons of Mars?
7. What is the NEAR mission?
When did it occur?
8. Has a probe been sent to Jupiter? What is its name?
On which moon did it find water?
9. The Cassini-Huygens spacecraft arrived at Saturn on July 1, 2004.
What is the name of its probe?
What did it do on January 14, 2005?
10. When did we discover rings on Uranus?
How many moons does it have?
11. In 1989 Neptune was explored. What did Voyager 2 find?
Is it still there?
Which instrument gives us current information?
12. What is the Kuiper Belt?
13. Pluto has a companion moon - what is its name?
Is Pluto still considered to be a planet?
14. For extra credit: Build a model of a space probe.
Your Name Class Period Date
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