Mars is much smaller than the Earth, here represented by a small yellow disc about 1/8 inch in size. Imagine how much harder it will be to send men and women to Mars, 115 feet away in our model. The American space program has been able to send men to one other world - the Moon. Consider the size of our model and think back to July 20, 1969, when Neil Armstrong walked on the Moon. The model shows the Earth and Moon separated by 6 and 1/4 inches, with the Earth being less than 1/4 inch in size. The surface temperature on Venus is about 9000 degrees Fahrenheit, but it is a dry heat, as there is no liquid water. The atmosphere of Venus is made mostly of carbon dioxide, which is very good at trapping heat. Venus is almost the same size as Earth, but it is a very different planet. The distances in our solar system are so large that in our model Mercury would only move about six feet in one day. Mercury moves faster around the Sun than any of the other planets, traveling about thirty miles in one second. Tiny Mercury is represented by a yellow disc slightly smaller than 1/10 inch. The Sun marker also shows the relative sizes of the nine known planets. By the time you have completed this walk, you will know why the Sun appears to be so much brighter than the other stars. This may surprise you, since the Sun is so much brighter than other stars. The Sun is made mostly of hydrogen and helium and provides the heat and light that make life possible on Earth.
The size of our model Sun is about 24 inches. Polished flush-to the-ground granite markers show the sizes of the planets relative to the Sun and are placed at scaled distances within a 1.64-mile section along the path between Lake Sacajawea and Nichols Boulevard, beginning at the 15th Avenue end of the Lake.įor more information about the Solar System Walk or to arrange guided group tours, call Dave Powell, 36. This model of our Sun and the nine known planets may help you better grasp the vastness of space.
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