Below you will find a ton of worksheets for students that are focused on all different areas of our solar system. You will find a lot of work on planets, the sun and our moon (Luna). As the sheets progress, we look at space exploration. We begin by exploring our moon and learn the phases of the moon. We look at the names of the planets and then break it apart into inner and outer planets. We dissect the sun and comets and look at what it is made up of. We explore the asteroid belt located between Mars and Jupiter. We go on to learn about the Space Shuttle the fastest engineered vessel to transport humans. As you scroll down you will notice the worksheets get much more colorful.
Print Solar System Worksheets
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Moon Phases 1
As the moon orbits around the Earth, we see a different side of the moon. As shown in the diagram below, sometimes we see the lit side and sometimes the dark side.
Phases of the Moon 2
Provide the names for the phases drawn in the 8 boxes below using the names listed in the following table.
Da Planets
Provide the names for the planets shown in the diagram below using the names listed in the following table.
Inner Planets
The "inner planets" are those closer to the sun than the solar system's asteroid belt. Provide the names of what is shown in the diagram below using the names listed in the following table.
Outer Planets
The "outer planets" are those farther from the sun than the solar system's asteroid belt.
Exploring the Solar System
Although many objects such as asteroids, comets, and meteors orbit our solar system's sun, the largest objects travelling around the sun are the planets.
Planets Puzzle
Use what you have learned about our solar system to complete the puzzle. You may need to refer to science book or an encyclopedia.
Anatomy of the Sun
The sun is the star nearest to the Earth. Provide the names for the parts of the sun shown in the diagram below using the names listed in the following table.
Comet Anatomy
Comets are objects that travel through space and are made of a combination of dust and ice. They are sometimes called "dirty snowballs" because of this.
Asteroid Belt
Between Mars and Jupiter is a large belt of rocks called asteroids orbiting the Sun. These asteroids may be pieces of a planet that broke apart millions of years ago.
The Space Shuttle
Provide the names of the parts of the Space Shuttle using the terms listed in the following table.
Shuttle Missions
Provide the names for the different stages of a complete Space Shuttle mission using the terms listed in the following table.
Launch Pads
Provide the names for the different parts of the Space Shuttle's launch site using the terms listed in the following table.
Label the Planets (with Word Bank)
Label all the planets in order. You are provided a good set of vocabulary words to work with.
Seasons of the Year
The diagram below shows the Earth’s position during different seasons throughout the year. Label the season and approximate date of each below.
The Hot and Cold
The diagram below shows the Earth's position in relation to the Sun during the summer and winter in the Northern Hemisphere.
The Planetary Birthday?
When a planet revolves around the Sun it is considered a year of time relative to that planet. Earth days 365 days to revolve around the Sun.
The Planetary Scale
Weight is a force that is dependant on the gravity of the Planet you are on. Calculate your weight on other planets.
What Is the Solar System?
Have you ever wondered what lies beyond our planet? When you see the sun from the horizon, it's not just the earth taking in all that energy. The earth is only a tiny part of an assembly orbiting the sun known as the solar system.
The solar system comprises the sun and the assembly of bodies orbiting it, including moons, planets, asteroids, meteoroids, and comets. The word 'solar' comes from 'sol,' a Latin word for sun.
Our solar system has a central star the sun. It is a monster; in fact it makes up 98% of the matter in our solar system. The gravity created by the large body exerts itself on the 8 planets that rotate around it in orbits. The solar system is thought to have formed 4.6 billion years ago. The closer a planet is to the sun, the hotter the average surface temperature on the surface of it. Each of them has a bit of personality itself. The solar system also has piles of rocks floating around in the form of meteoroids. There are also a little bit of sparkle going on across the solar system in the form of comets. There are just under two hundred moons in our solar system. Earth’s moon (Luna) is not the only one out there. The four inner planets are mostly composed of metal and rock, while the four outer ones are much larger. From what researchers can tell so far Earth and the elements it is composed of is pretty rare. The elements we commonly find on Earth are only found in trace amounts in other locations of our solar system.
Planets
There isn't a simple way to define these cellestial bodies. The actual definition has been a controversial subject for a long time now.
However, three characteristics describe them:
They travel around a star - the sun, in this case - in circular orbits;
They are large enough to have self-gravity to assume a spherical shape; and,
Their orbital area is free of debris or impediments.
There are currently eight planets orbiting the sun. These include the:
Terrestrial planets. Examples of terrestrial include Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars. They contain silicate rocks.
Gas giants. These giant planets have a small rocky core encircled by hydrogen and helium, hence the name. Jupiter and Saturn belong to this class.
Ice giants. The ice giants refer to Saturn and Neptune. Scientists once grouped them as gas giants. However, the distinction became necessary because they contain heavier gases such as oxygen and nitrogen.
Dwarf Planets
There’s another class of spatial bodies called dwarf planets. They resemble regular planets in form and appearance but differ in key characteristics.
Because they're smaller, dwarf planets lack the substantial gravitational force required to draw materials in their orbit. Typical examples include Pluto (once considered a planet) and the asteroid Ceres.
Satellites
Satellites are smaller bodies orbiting larger bodies such as planets and comets. Moons are natural satellites, such as the one orbiting our earth.
Most planets have at least one moon, except Mercury and Venus, which have no moons.
Comets
Comets are bodies of frozen gases orbiting the sun. They also contain rock and dust. When passing close to the sun, comets warm up and begin to release gases. The gases glow against sunlight from a distance, leaving a brilliant, visible trail.
What are these gases made of? According to Space.com, the comet gas is a mixture of water vapor, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and other trace substances.
Asteroids
Asteroids are essentially rocks orbiting the sun. They were formed from leftover materials from the solar system's formation and come in different shapes and sizes.
Asteroids are also called planetoids or minor planets. They orbit the sun like planets, but they're much smaller. Many asteroids exist in the solar system, but most reside in the asteroid belt, which lies between Mars and Jupiter.
Meteoroids
Meteoroids are tiny rocks or metallic substances orbiting the sun. They also orbit the sun like planets, comets and asteroids do. However, they are the smallest among these bodies. Meteoroids are tiny. They can be as small as grain and as big as a small asteroid.
Meteoroids burn when entering the earth at high speeds, appearing as light streaks in the atmosphere. They’re called meteors or shooting stars. The remnants that hit the ground are called meteorites.
Final Thoughts
Our solar system comprises the sun and the many bodies orbiting it, such as planets, dwarf planets, satellites, asteroids, comets, and meteoroids.
These bodies are bound to the sun by gravity and differ in shape and size, ranging from giant planets to small meteoroids.