Terrestrial planet

High school (ages 12+)
Space & Astronomy

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/terrestrial-planet

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the internal structure?Characterized by a metallic core, silicate mantle, and rocky crust
2. What is the formation mechanism?Accretion of planetesimals in the inner solar system from refractory materials
3. What are terrestrial planets?Terrestrial planets are rocky worlds with solid surfaces and metal cores, like Earth. They are smaller and denser than gas giants.
4. How do rocky planets form?In the early solar system, dust and gas collapsed into a disk. Metals and silicates stuck together to make small grains, which grew into planetesimals and then protoplanets that became rocky planets.

Nebular Hypothesis: The theory that planets form from a rotating disk of gas and dust around a young star.
Biosignatures: Chemical or physical indicators in the atmosphere or on a planet's surface that suggest the presence of life.
Comparative Planetology: The study of planets by comparing their physical and chemical properties to understand their formation and evolution.