Properties of the Planets Trivia Quiz

Answer: True

Mercury is the planet that is closest to the sun. The pressure of the intense solar light is much stronger there than near any other planet that is further away from the sun. The solar radiation that is present on Mercury pushes atoms away from the planet, which creates a comet-like tail mostly made of sodium. The tail has been detected more than 24 million kilometres from Mercury!

Answer: Venus

Venus is the brightest planet because of its thick cloud cover. The clouds reflect sunlight back into the solar system, making the planet appear very bright.

Answer: Mars

The dust storms on Mars can reach speeds of over 160 km/h (100 mph). The storms can occur in small areas or over the entire planet. The storms have been shown to increase the global temperature on Mars when they occur.

Answer: 197 million square miles

The entire surface of Earth covers about 197 million square miles (510 million square km). Of this, approximately 71% is water, while only 29% is land.

Answer: Bigger than all other planets combined

Jupiter is a really big planet. Its mass is more than 300 times that of Earth. Even its Great Red Spot spans an area larger than Earth's diameter. Jupiter is about two-and-a-half times bigger than all of the other planets combined!

Answer: Jupiter

Jupiter has the shortest days because of its rotational period. Despite its size, Jupiter's day happens in just under ten hours because of its fast rotation. It rotates at different speeds at the poles and the equator because it is a gas giant. Jupiter's day actually varies from 9 hours and 56 minutes around the poles to 9 hours and 50 minutes close to the equator.

Answer: Neptune

Uranus showed some unexpected changes in its orbit that led French astronomer Alexis Bouvard to propose that the changes were due to the gravitational pull of an unknown planet. After his death, Neptune was observed using a telescope in the position that was predicted by Bouvard's calculations.

Answer: True

Besides Earth, which is not named after any gods, all of the other planets besides Uranus in our solar system have names derived from Roman gods. The name "Uranus" is derived from the Greek god of the sky "Ouranos".

Answer: 4

Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune all have rings. The rings of Saturn were first observed in the 1600s, but the rings of the other gas giants were not discovered until the 1970s.

Answer: 2006

Although Pluto orbits the Sun, the International Astronomical Union redefined the term "planet" in 2006. A planet must have three characteristics. Pluto only has two characteristics in the definition. This meant that Pluto could no longer be called a planet. It was reclassified as a dwarf planet after the new definition was created.