THE OUTER PLANETSChapter 20 Section 4

The Outer Planets The Outer planets are the 5 outermost planets Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, & Pluto

The Gas Giants The first 4 outer planets

are known as the Gas Giants That’s Jupiter, Saturn,

Uranus, and Neptune The Gas Giants are much

larger than Earth and DO NOT have solid surfaces.

Pluto is not a Gas Giant because it has a rocky surface… So it’s a terrestrial

planet!

The Gas Giants Although they have

gas surfaces, the Gas Giants have solid cores made of rock, ice, frozen carbon dioxide (Dry Ice), and other compounds.

Jupiter Jupiter is the 5th

planet from the sun.

It is the largest planet. It is more than 300

times larger than Earth!!!!

The Great Red Spot Jupiter’s most

prominent feature is the Great Red Spot

The area of swirling red clouds that is actually a storm.

The Great Red Spot is so big that mulitple Earths can fit in it!

Saturn Saturn is the 6th

planet from the sun It is also the 2nd

largest planet Saturn has a thick

atmosphere like Jupiter Mostly made of

hydrogen and helium

Saturn’s Rings Saturn is known for

its beautiful rings The Rings are

made of chunks of ice and rock

Uranus Uranus is the 7th

planet from the sun It is TWICE as far

from the Sun as Saturn!!

Uranus titled 90o from the vertical

Neptune Neptune is the 8th

planet from the Sun Neptune has a blue

atmosphere Neptune was

discovered thanks to a mathematical prediction.

Pluto… Pluto was the 9th

planet of our Solar System

Unlike the other Outer Planets, Pluto is a terrestrial planet

Pluto…is it really a planet??

Pluto is smaller than the Moon and much smaller than the Earth

In 2006, Pluto was reclassified as a Dwarf Planet by the International Astronomical Union (IAU)

Some scientists still argue that Pluto should still be a planet