 The orbits of all planets are almost in the same

plane. These means that the Solar System is flat.

 The planetary orbits are nearly circular. The
elliptical orbits depart only slightly from being a
perfect circle.
 The orbits of the planets are nearly in the same
plane as the rotation of the sun.
 All planets revolve around the sun in
counterclockwise direction . Most planets rotate
around their own axis in a counterclockwise
fashion.
 The distance of the planets from the sun can be
express in a similar relationship called Bode’s Law ,
named after German astronomer Johanne Bode. The
calculated distance (using Bode’s Law ) and the
observe distances of the planets from the Sun are
almost the same, with exception of Neptune and
Pluto.
 The satellite systems of Jupiter and Saturn are nearly
identical in their arrangements with the Solar System.
The distances of the satellites from the planets follow
Bode’s Law.
 The satellites and planets contain almost all the
rotational motion of the Solar System.
 The Solar System also contains asteroid and comets.
 ASTEROIDS are made-up of rocks and
are sometimes referred to as minor
planets in many ways. They are
atmosphere-free and they orbit around
the sun.

 COMETS are composed mainly of ice (

frozen water and gas) and nonvolatile
gas (silicate minerals and carbon grains).
• The KUIPER BELT is often called the Solar
System’s “Final Frontier” because it is at the
outermost region of the Solar System. It is a
region of the solar system beyond the orbit of
Neptune, believed to contain many comets ,
asteroids, and other small bodies made
largely of ice.
• The OORT CLOUD is extended shell of icy
objects located farther than the Kuiper Belt.
It is roughly spherical and is thought to be the
origin of the long period comets that have
been observed.
CATEGORIES BASED ON COMPOSITION

 Reffered to as INNER  Reffered to as GAS

PLANETS PLANETS
 Composed mostly of  Composed mostly of
dense, rocky and metallic hydrogen and helium.
materials.
 MERCURY  JUPITER
 VENUS  SATURN
 EARTH  URANUS
 MARS  NEPTUNE
CATEGORIES BASED ON
POSITION RELATIVE TO SUN

MERCURY JUPITER
VENUS SATURN
EARTH URANUS
MARS NEPTUNE

Asteroid belt between mars and jupiter form

the boundary between the inner and outer
planets.
CATEGORIES BASED ON
POSITION RELATIVE TO EARTH

MERCURY MARS
VENUS JUPITER
SATURN
URANUS
NEPTUNE
1. Is in orbit around a Sun
2. Has sufficient mass for itself-gravity to
overcome rigid body forces so that it
assumes a hydrostatic equilibrium(nearly
round) shape
3. Has cleared the neighborhood around its
orbit.