The Essential Question

What make a planet…a planet?

Who named the planets?

How do we determine the status of a planet?

What ever happened to Pluto?

(Google Images, 2010.)

Mercury Venus Earth Mars Jupiter Neptune Uranus Pluto

(sometimes!!)

(Google Images, 2010.)

The Romans matched planetary attributes with particular deities and named the known planets accordingly.

First astronomers focused their attention on the sun, the moon, and visible planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn.

They believed each of these celestial bodies influenced a particular day of the week.

(Google Images, 2010)

Mercury was named after the messenger to the gods,

Venus, the brightest planet visible to the unaided eye, was named for the goddess of love and beauty.

Jupiter, more than twice as massive as all the other planets combined, earned the name of the superior god.

(Google Images, 2010.)

A planet, to be defined as a planet, must:

1. Be massive enough to form itself into a stable, almost spherical shape;

2. Orbit a star;3. Have cleared its

orbit of other bodies;4. Not have its orbit

unduly interfered with by other planets

(Google Images, 2010)

Pluto, is the second-largest known dwarf planet.

Tenth-largest body observed directly orbiting the Sun.

Originally classified as a planet.

Pluto is now considered the largest member of a distinct population called the Kuiper belt.

Planets are huge round stars.They must maintain an orbit.They were named after Roman gods.Pluto is no longer a planet.Pluto is a large star.

If you could, which planet would you visit? Why?

Please visit:National Aeronautics and Space

Administration-- www.nasa.govAstronomy for Kids --

www.kidsastronomy.comKidsites.com --

http://www.kidsites.com/sites-edu/science.htm

The Nine Planets Solar System Tour -- http://nineplanets.org/