AST101H1 Lecture Notes - Giant Planet, Milky Way, Planetary Science

• School: UTSG
• Department: Astronomy & Astrophysics
• Course: AST101H1
• Professor: Michael Reid

Document Summary

Based on what we find in our own solar system, we expect that terrestrial planets will likely be located nearer to the planetary system"s star than any jovian planet. Jovian planets will likely be formed farther out. Compared to terrestrial planets, jovian planets are more massive and lower in average density. However, the densities in their deep interiors are quite high, in some cases higher than the densities found at the centers of the terrestrial worlds. Notice that uranus is located at an average distance of 19. 2 au, which is close to half of pluto"s average distance of 39. 5 au. Many people are surprised to realize that uranus, the seventh planet from the sun, is only half as far as pluto. This surprising fact arises because the outer planets are much more widely spaced than the inner planets. The dwarf planet eris was discovered in 2005, orbiting the sun at an average distance about twice that of pluto.