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Thursday, February 2, 2012

Top of the Heap! DMS Favorites...

My dad and I were watching the news the other night and they were talking about the solar flares that have been happening recently. So Lizzy and I thought it would be a great idea to throw a little love out into the Milky Way Galaxy. After all, it's our extended neighborhood out there : ) We would love to hear what you guys think!

This weeks Top of the Heap: The Solar System

The X marks our solar system in the Milky Way Galaxy

I have always found Earth's sister planet, Venus, to be fascinating. It just looks so mysterious and it's named after the goddess of love and beauty. I used to picture it as a paradise; blue skies with lush, green tropical plants growing everywhere, cerulean blue oceans, and magical creatures all living together in harmony. Well, according to science, I couldn't be farther from reality. Science has since explained that the atmosphere on Venus is made of noxious gasses, the blue oceans are actually gushing valleys of hot lava, and as for the tropical plants- not so much, it's pretty much a really hot dessert. Not a very pleasant place to visit,  but I like to think of it how I like to think of it, and in my imagination, it's really pretty : ) ~ F


Venus is the second closest planet to the Sun and it is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. It is often called Earth's twin planet because in many ways Venus is very similar to our own planet.  (read more on venus at NASA)


I really love the solar system and I find all of it so amazing to think about.  Stars, comets, solar flares, planets, black holes... the list goes on!  But, without a doubt my favorite planet is Saturn. It looks so beautiful out there in space.  Did you know that the rings extend off the planet the same distance that the Moon is from Earth? That would be so cool to see!  Plus, the large gas planet has 62 satellites (moons).  Wow! The night sky must be spectacular from Saturn.  Imagine seeing that many moons when you look out into the darkness? ~ L



Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun. It is named after the Roman god Saturn, equated to the Greek Cronus (the Titan father of Zeus), the Babylonian Ninurta and the Hindu Shani. Saturn's symbol represents the Roman god's sickle. 
(read more about Saturn at NASA)


10 comments:

  1. I love this whole science too! My son said, "what's behind space?" my other son said, "more space."

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  2. I too am fascinated by our Universe. These are gorgeous pictures.

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  3. Okay, I am fascinated by our universe, and I adore history and myths. So, thanks for combining them both into one cool post! (I think I'll send my kiddos here for tomorrow's science lesson.) :0) So fun!

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  4. momto8, LOL! he's right!

    Donna, Thanks! I had fun picking them out

    M. Christine, That's great! We would love for them to stop by! In my mind, I always picture the personality of the planets to co-inside with their respective Gods/Goddesses. For instance, Neptune is a somewhat grumpy planet- likes to keep to himself mostly, Venus is hot stuff and a certain tease, Jupiter is kind of a jerk... something like that : ) ~ F

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  5. Awesome pictures! I love the solar system. I really like Jupiter. The Red Spot has always fascinated me. I can't believe it is 3 times the size of the planet we live on. I honestly can't even picture that- but the planet is pretty and has sooooooo many moons!

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  6. I stayed up the other night to watch the news because they said there were crazy solar flares going off on the sun and they were going to say if the northern lights could be spotted where I live. Sadly, after staying up to find out they said no because it was too cloudy out. My favorite planet is probably Uranus. Not because the name is funny, but because I like the ringed planets the best and the fact that it is tipped on its side is really cool

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  7. Awesome pictures! My favorite planets are Jupiter and Saturn because I think the spot on Jupiter is cool and the rings on Saturn are amazing.

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  8. @Elaine- I agree- Jupiter is so cool. I love the fact you included about the spot. WOW!

    @Trey- I wish we got to see the solar flares here! It is interesting that Uranus is tipped on its side! The ringed planets are cool!

    @Flex- Glad you like the pictures and I like those planets, too!

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  9. Saturn has always been my favorite planet, but the Universe is a vast place with so much yet to be discovered.

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    1. I know! Who knows what will be discovered out there! It is amazing to think about!

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