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Science: Elementary School: Grades 3, 4 and 5 Quiz - The Solar System (Questions)

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The Solar System includes the Sun, the planets which orbit it, the moons which orbit the planets and everything else which orbits the Sun, such as comets and asteroids. People have always been intrigued by the planets - these mysterious heavenly bodies in the night sky. No wonder they gave them the names of gods! Jupiter was the king of the Roman gods, Mars was their god of war, Neptune their god of the sea and Venus their goddess of love.

What is the Sun?

[ ]	A comet
[ ]	A star
[ ]	A planet
[ ]	An asteroid

Which planet is closest to the Sun?

[ ]	Mars
[ ]	Venus
[ ]	Earth
[ ]	Mercury

Measured by diameter, how much bigger is the Sun than the Earth?

[ ]	Approximately twice as big
[ ]	Approximately 10 times
[ ]	Approximately 100 times
[ ]	Approximately 1,000 times

What do we call the path a planet follows around the Sun?

[ ]	An orbit
[ ]	A circle
[ ]	A gravitational pull
[ ]	A rotation

Which is the largest planet in our Solar System?

[ ]	Saturn
[ ]	Neptune
[ ]	Earth
[ ]	Jupiter

How many planets are there in the solar system?

[ ]	Seven
[ ]	Eight
[ ]	Nine
[ ]	Ten

What are Saturn's rings made of?

[ ]	Light beams trapped by Saturn's gravitational pull
[ ]	Ice particles
[ ]	Thousands of moons
[ ]	An asteroid belt

Life is found on which of these planets?

[ ]	Earth
[ ]	Earth and Mars
[ ]	Neptune, Venus and Earth
[ ]	Jupiter and Earth

How long does it take the Earth to orbit the Sun?

[ ]	24 hours
[ ]	52 weeks
[ ]	365 days
[ ]	Two years

10.

Which of these is the correct order of the planets (including the dwarf planet)?

[ ]	Mercury, Venus, Mars, Earth, Saturn, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto
[ ]	Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto
[ ]	Mars, Venus, Earth, Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto
[ ]	Earth, Venus, Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, Pluto, Uranus

Science: Elementary School: Grades 3, 4 and 5 Quiz - The Solar System (Answers)

What is the Sun?

[ ]	A comet
[x]	A star
[ ]	A planet
[ ]	An asteroid

The Sun is our nearest star - it's only 148 million km away!

Which planet is closest to the Sun?

[ ]	Mars
[ ]	Venus
[ ]	Earth
[x]	Mercury

Mercury is 46 million km from the Sun

Measured by diameter, how much bigger is the Sun than the Earth?

[ ]	Approximately twice as big
[ ]	Approximately 10 times
[x]	Approximately 100 times
[ ]	Approximately 1,000 times

The Sun's diameter is 1,377,648 km while the Earth's is 12,756 km

What do we call the path a planet follows around the Sun?

[x]	An orbit
[ ]	A circle
[ ]	A gravitational pull
[ ]	A rotation

An orbit is the path an object in space follows around another object - the Moon orbits the Earth, which orbits the Sun

Which is the largest planet in our Solar System?

[ ]	Saturn
[ ]	Neptune
[ ]	Earth
[x]	Jupiter

The Earth could fit into Jupiter 1,000 times

How many planets are there in the solar system?

[ ]	Seven
[x]	Eight
[ ]	Nine
[ ]	Ten

Eight for now! Pluto has been called a 'dwarf planet' since 2006, when scientists debated whether it was large enough to count as a true planet - the debate continues to this day

What are Saturn's rings made of?

[ ]	Light beams trapped by Saturn's gravitational pull
[x]	Ice particles
[ ]	Thousands of moons
[ ]	An asteroid belt

Saturn's seven rings are made of ice particles which travel in orbit around the planet

Life is found on which of these planets?

[x]	Earth
[ ]	Earth and Mars
[ ]	Neptune, Venus and Earth
[ ]	Jupiter and Earth

No life has been found on any planet apart from Earth - at least, not yet!

How long does it take the Earth to orbit the Sun?

[ ]	24 hours
[ ]	52 weeks
[x]	365 days
[ ]	Two years

It actually takes the Earth just over 365.25 days to orbit the Sun, which is why there is an extra day in a Leap Year, occuring every four years

10.

Which of these is the correct order of the planets (including the dwarf planet)?

[ ]	Mercury, Venus, Mars, Earth, Saturn, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto
[x]	Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto
[ ]	Mars, Venus, Earth, Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto
[ ]	Earth, Venus, Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, Pluto, Uranus

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