1asteroidbelt

= THE ASTEROID BELT IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM =

= QUICK FACTS ON THE SOLAR SYSTEM =
 * [[image:POSTER2.jpg width="326" height="383"]]


 * 1) **The sun is the main sequence**
 * 2) **There are 8 planets**
 * 3) **Has 2 main belts of small bodies**
 * 4) **The main belt is the asteroid belt**
 * 5) **The second main** **belt is the kupiter belt**

= THE SOLAR SYSTEM =


 * The Asteroid Belt is a part of the solar system. The Solar System consists of the Sun and those celestial objects bound to it by gravity, all of which formed from the collapse of a giant molecular cloud approximately 4.6 billion years ago. The Sun's retinue of objects circle it in a nearly flat disc called the ecliptic plane, most of the mass of which is contained within eight relatively solitary planets,whose orbits are almost circular. The four smaller inner planets; Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars, also called the terrestrial planets, are primarily composed of rock and metal. The four outer planets, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, also called the gas giants, are composed largely of hydrogen and helium and are far more massive than the** terrestrials.

= Scientific Information =


 * Most large objects in orbit around the Sun lie near the plane of Earth's orbit, known as the ecliptic. The planets are very close to the ecliptic while comets and Kuiper belt objects are frequently at significantly greater angles to it.

The principal component of the Solar System is the Sun, a main sequence G2 star that contains 99.86 percent of the system's known mass and dominates it gravitationally. The Sun's four largest orbiting bodies, the gas giants, account for 99 percent of the remaining mass, with Jupiter and Saturn together comprising more than 90 percent__. __**



= THE ASTEROID BELT = = Asteroids are primoridal objects left over from the formation of the Solar System. While some have suggested that they are the remains of a protoplanet that was destroyed in a massive collision long ago, the prevailing view is that asteroids are leftover rocky matter that never successfully coalesced into a planet. = = = = =

Charts A chart of the solar system.



A chart of the main belt in our solar system the asteroid belt

media type="custom" key="4582350" The solar System Video

media type="custom" key="4582362"

The Asteroid Belt Video

Web Links

[|www.google.com] [|www.ask.com] [|www.kidsastronomy.com] [|www.nasa.gov/] [|www.solstation.com/stars/asteroid.htm]

Bibliographic Information/ references


 * 1) **Encyclopedia of Philosophy** **Principal Editor: Edward N. Zalta** **was founded in 1995**
 * 2) **The new Solar System book J. Kelly Beatty, Andrew Chaikin {Editors}**