The solar system

Nine planets with their moons, many asteroids and the sun make up the solar system. All the planets are moving round the sun but they do not all move round at the same rate. The earth takes one year to move round the sun. The earth is 93 million miles from the sun; some of the other planets such as Venus and Mercury are nearer the sun, the others (Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune) are farther away.

Much smaller bodies – the satellites or moons are moving round the planets. The moon is a satellite of the earth. The diameter of the moon is about one – fourth that of the earth. The moon takes about 27 1/3 days to make a complete revolution about the earth. Another planet Neptune has a moon of its own, while others have more than one moon. Jupiter has four chief moons and five smaller ones and Saturn nine.

The earth occupies an intermediate place in the solar family. It is a relatively small planet, yet not the smallest. It is relatively close to the sun, yet not the closest. The earth revolves around the sun once in 365.25 days, while the planet Mercury moves around the sun once in 88 days and Neptune's period of revolution is 165 (earth) years. The diameter of the earth (7 926.6 miles) is more than twice as great as that of Mercury (3 030 miles) yet it is less than one – tenth that of Jupiter (86 500 miles) and less than one-hundredth that of the sun (865 000 miles). The mean distance from the earth to the sun is 92 900 000 miles which is nearly three times as great as that of Mercury 36 000 000 miles, but only one-thirtieth that of Neptune, 2 791 600 000 miles.

The density (water = I) of the earth is 5,5 which is only slightly greater that of Venus, 4,9 and Mars, 4,4 but is much greater that of the Sun, 1,4 or of Saturn 0,7.

Mercury Меркурий

Neptune Нептун

Jupiter Юпитер

Venus Венера

Mars Mapc

Saturn Сатурн

Uranus Уран

WORDS

asteroid астероид

to make (made, made) делать

to make up same составлять тот же самый,

одинаковый, сходный

rate темп, скорость

such такой

such as такой, как

satellite сателлит, спутник

while в то время как, тогда как

to occupy занимать

intermediate промежуточный

relative сравнительный,

относительный

yet однако, тем не менее

close близкий

once раз, когда-то, некогда

period период, время

revolution вращение, оборот

twice дважды, вдвое

to mean (meant, meant) значить, означать

mean средний

density плотность, удельный вес

slight незначительный

nearly почти, около,

приблизительно

time время, раз

Answer the following questions:

1. What do we call the solar system?

2. How many planets are there in the solar system?

3. Do all planets have moons?

4. How many has the Earth (Neptune, Jupiter)?

5. Do planets move round the sun at the same rate?

6. How much time does it take the earth to make a complete revolution around the sun?

7. What is a solar year?

8. How many day does a leap - year contain?

9. To which do we add extra day in a leap - year?

10. How much time does it take the moon to make a complete revolution around the earth?

11. What is the distance between the moon and the earth?

12. What is the difference between a planet and a star?

13. Which planet is closest to the sun?

14. Which is the smallest (the biggest) planet?

Translate into Russian paying attention to "that of and "those of:

1. The diameter of the earth is larger than that of the moon.

2. The atmosphere of the earth is denser than that of Mars.

3. The diameter of the moon is about 2 160 miles and its mass is about one eighty-first that of the earth.

4. Because the moon is so near to the earth its gravitative pull (притяжение) upon the earth is greater than that of other heavenly bodies except the sun.

5. The elements which compose the sun and the stars are the same as those that compose the earth.

6. The temperature of the sea is much more uniform than that between the sun and the earth.

Translate into Russian paying attention to the translation of the word "times":

1. The diameter of the sun is nearly four times greater than the distance of our moon from the earth.

2. Many stars are bigger and brighter than the sun. The average star has a volume a million million times larger.

3. The moon is about 240 000 miles away from the earth, which is less than ten times the distance around the earth.

4. The mean distance from the earth to the sun is nearly three times as great as that to Mercury.

5. The atom of uranium is about two hundred thirty times as heavy as one atom of hydrogen.

6. The mean density of Jupiter is about 1,3 times the density of water.

7. The mass of the sun is so great that its gravity is 28 times that of the earth.

Translate into English:

1. Все планеты движутся вокруг Солнца примерно с одинаковой скоростью.

2. Меркурий ближе всего к Солнцу. Он гораздо меньше Земли.

3. Венера тоже меньше Земли, Венера – самая яркая звезда утром на востоке, а вечером – на западе.

4. Меркурию требуется 88 дней, чтобы пройти вокруг Солнца.

5. Диаметр Земли в четыре раза больше диаметра Луны.

6. Луна не такая большая, как Земля.

7. Диаметр Марса в два раза меньше Земли.

ТЕХТ 3