Order in Space: A Design Source Book

Product Information

Haynes, H. M., ed. (2016–2017). CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics (97thed.). CRC Press. p.14-3. ISBN 978-1-4987-5428-6. With a few exceptions, the farther a planet or belt is from the Sun, the larger the distance between its orbit and the orbit of the next nearest object to the Sun. For example, Venus is approximately 0.33 AU farther out from the Sun than Mercury, whereas Saturn is 4.3 AU out from Jupiter, and Neptune lies 10.5 AU out from Uranus. Attempts have been made to determine a relationship between these orbital distances, like the Titius–Bode law [57] and Johannes Kepler's model based on the Platonic solids, [58] but ongoing discoveries have invalidated these hypotheses. [59]

The reason why it is BEAM (2016) rather than Genesis I (2006) is that BEAM was specifically designed for human habitation and was attached to the ISS, while Genesis I and Genesis II (2007) were technology demonstration prototypes for future space habitats. The angular momentum of the Solar System is a measure of the total amount of orbital and rotational momentum possessed by all its moving components. [37] Although the Sun dominates the system by mass, it accounts for only about 2% of the angular momentum. [38] [39] The planets, dominated by Jupiter, account for most of the rest of the angular momentum due to the combination of their mass, orbit, and distance from the Sun, with a possibly significant contribution from comets. [38] CompositionThere are an unknown number of smaller dwarf planets and innumerable small bodies orbiting the Sun. [d] These objects are distributed in the asteroid belt that lies between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, the Kuiper belt, the scattered disc that lies beyond Neptune's orbit and at even further reaches of the Solar System (in which case they are classified as extreme trans-Neptunian objects). There is consensus among astronomers on the classification of the following nine objects as dwarf planets: the asteroid Ceres, the Kuiper-belt objects Pluto, Orcus, Haumea, Quaoar, and Makemake, and the scattered-disc objects Gonggong, Eris, and Sedna. [d] Many small-body populations, including comets, centaurs and interplanetary dust clouds, freely travel between the regions of the Solar System. Peplow, Mark (6 May 2004). "How Mars got its rust". Nature: news040503–6. doi: 10.1038/news040503-6. ISSN 0028-0836. Archived from the original on 7 April 2022 . Retrieved 9 April 2022. Within ten light-years of the Sun there are relatively few stars, the closest being the triple star system Alpha Centauri, which is about 4.4 light-years away and may be in the Local Bubble's G-Cloud. [218] Alpha Centauri A and B are a closely tied pair of Sun-like stars, whereas the closest star to Earth, the small red dwarf Proxima Centauri, orbits the pair at a distance of 0.2 light-year. In 2016, a potentially habitable exoplanet was found to be orbiting Proxima Centauri, called Proxima Centauri b, the closest confirmed exoplanet to the Sun. [219]

Inner Solar System". NASA Science: Share the Science. Archived from the original on 10 April 2022 . Retrieved 2 April 2022. Solar System Objects". NASA/JPL Solar System Dynamics. Archived from the original on 7 July 2021 . Retrieved 14 August 2023. Meals Ready to Eat: Expedition 44 Crew Members Sample Leafy Greens Grown on Space Station". Nasa. 7 July 2015. Earth's magnetic field also stops its atmosphere from being stripped away by the solar wind. [74] Venus and Mars do not have magnetic fields, and as a result the solar wind causes their atmospheres to gradually bleed away into space. [75] The interplanetary medium is home to at least two disc-like regions of cosmic dust. The first, the zodiacal dust cloud, lies in the inner Solar System and causes the zodiacal light. It may have been formed by collisions within the asteroid belt brought on by gravitational interactions with the planets; a more recent proposed origin is the planet Mars. [66] The second dust cloud extends from about 10AU (1.5billionkm; 930millionmi) to about 40AU (6.0billionkm; 3.7billionmi), and was probably created by collisions within the Kuiper belt. [67] [68]a b Ryden, Robert (December 1999). "Astronomical Math". The Mathematics Teacher. 92 (9): 786–792. doi: 10.5951/MT.92.9.0786. ISSN 0025-5769. JSTOR 27971203. Archived from the original on 12 April 2022 . Retrieved 29 March 2022. The Sun is composed of roughly 98% hydrogen and helium, [46] as are Jupiter and Saturn. [47] [48] A composition gradient exists in the Solar System, created by heat and light pressure from the early Sun; those objects closer to the Sun, which are more affected by heat and light pressure, are composed of elements with high melting points. Objects farther from the Sun are composed largely of materials with lower melting points. [49] The boundary in the Solar System beyond which those volatile substances could coalesce is known as the frost line, and it lies at roughly five times the Earth's distance from the Sun. [3] a b c Podolak, M.; Weizman, A.; Marley, M. (December 1995). "Comparative models of Uranus and Neptune". Planetary and Space Science. 43 (12): 1517–1522. Bibcode: 1995P&SS...43.1517P. doi: 10.1016/0032-0633(95)00061-5.