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Idiomas disponibles
Idiomas disponibles
Motorized Solar System
Bring the solar system to life with the Motorized Solar System and Planetarium. Learn about
the planets as they move around the glowing sun. Use the star dome to transform any room
into a night sky full of stars and constellations. The star dome works as a night-light too.
Wonder and dream under starry skies!
Includes:
• Central tower with LED light
• Eight planet orbs on rods, with identifying planetary symbols*
• Sun sphere (with symbol)
• Northern Hemisphere star dome
* see table on page 4
Assembling the Solar System Model
Before starting, place 4 AA batteries in the battery compartment. See page 8 of this guide
for instructions.
Fit the sun sphere over the LED light.
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Next, attach the planet rods to the central tower. Each planet is printed with its own
2.
planetary symbol. For the correct order, refer to the first three columns of the chart on
page 4. They list each planet's name, symbol, and position in relation to the sun.
The shortest rod has Mercury, the closest planet to the sun. Insert this rod into the
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top ring of the central tower.
The next shortest rod has Venus. Insert the rod with Venus into the second ring from
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the top.
Continue in this way until you have attached all rods with planets to the tower. Notice
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that there is a tiny sphere attached to Earth; that is the moon.
You are now ready to learn about the planets! Turn on the motor/lamp at the base of the
3.
tower and watch the model move and glow.
For directions on using the star dome, see page 5.
Use your Motorized Solar System as a night-light. Leave it on in either mode
(motor or lamp only) and it will automatically turn off after 20 minutes.
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The Solar System Model
Turn on the model and dim the room lights. You'll be able to see the sun's light shining on the
planets better in a darkened room. The support rods and tower will also blend more into the
background.
Solar System Basics
The sun is at the center of our solar system. It gives us heat and light.
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Earth is one of eight planets in our solar system.
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The inner planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars) are made of rocks and metals; they are
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the "terrestrial planets."
The outer planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune) are made mostly of gases, liquid,
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and ice; these are the "gas giants."
The planets move, or revolve, around the sun constantly.
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The planets move in patterns called orbits. The shape of an orbit is not perfectly circular,
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but like a slightly squished circle.
All the planets move in the same direction and on the same plane ("slice of space") as
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they orbit the sun.
One "year" is the time it takes a planet to orbit the sun.
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Each planet also rotates, or spins, as it revolves around the sun.
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One "day" is the time it takes a planet to rotate all the way around.
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The planets travel around the sun at different speeds. (In this model, the inner planets
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move faster as a group, while the outer planets move more slowly as a group.)
The planets follow very regular patterns as they travel around the sun. A planet's
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location changes from day to day, but scientists can calculate where each planet will be
at any given time using mathematics.
Model Not to Scale
Keep in mind that home or classroom solar system models cannot show planet sizes or
distances to scale. This means that the planets' sizes and distances relative to one another
are not what they would be in real life.
For example, the sun must be shown much smaller, compared to the planets, than it actually
is. In reality, the sun is about 108 times the Earth's diameter and is about 1 million times
greater in volume—a million Earths could fit inside the sun!
The distance between planets is also hard to show on a model. In reality, the planets are
very small compared to the distances between them. Suppose, for example, our model-sized
Neptune were shown a correct relative distance from the sun (which would be huge if shown
to scale—about 28 inches in diameter, or about as big as an adult bicycle tire). Neptune would
need to be 1.4 miles (2322 meters) away. It would take you around a half hour to walk from
the sun to the edge of your solar system model!
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