Sizes and distances in the solar system, using a scale

Answer Key - Grade 6 Science Worksheet

Circle the best answer, or write your answer on the line.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Table (NASA Planetary Fact Sheet), with columns Planet and Millions of km, average distance from the Sun in millions of km: Jupiter 778.5; Saturn 1,432.0; Uranus 2,867.0; Neptune 4,515.0.

2. 1.

   The hallway model keeps 10 million km per centimeter. How many centimeters from the Sun model does Bo put Jupiter, to the nearest whole centimeter?

   78 cm
3. 2.

   Esme carries the Saturn model down the hallway, where each centimeter stands for 10 million km. How many centimeters from the Sun model, to the nearest whole centimeter?

   143 cm
4. 3.

   Uranus is next on Jun's hallway model, still at 10 million km per centimeter. How many centimeters from the Sun model, to the nearest whole centimeter?

   287 cm
5. 4.

   Saturn 120,536; Earth 12,756. Kira is picking balls for Saturn and Earth. About how many times as wide as Earth is Saturn, to the nearest whole number?

   9
6. 5.

   Sun 1,391,400; Jupiter 142,984. Luz wants to know how the biggest planet measures up to the Sun. About how many times as wide as Jupiter is the Sun, to the nearest whole number?

   10
7. 6.

   Jupiter 142,984; Mars 6,792. On Milo's poster, Mars looks like a marble beside Jupiter. About how many times as wide as Mars is Jupiter, to the nearest whole number?

   21

8. Scale cards

   1 cm stands for 1,000 km; 1 cm stands for 1 million km; 1 cm stands for 5 million km; 1 cm stands for 10 million km.

9. 7.

   Noah wants a model from the Sun to Neptune that fits in a 5-meter hallway. Neptune is 4,515.0 million km out. Which scale works?

   • 1 cm stands for 1 million km
   • 1 cm stands for 10 million km
   • 1 cm stands for 5 million km
   • 1 cm stands for 1,000 km

10. Scale cards

    1 cm stands for 0.5 million km; 1 cm stands for 1 million km; 1 cm stands for 2 million km; 1 cm stands for 3 million km.

11. 8.

    Pia has a 1-meter poster for the Sun and the planets out to Mars, which is 228.0 million km away. Which scale fits Mars on the poster?

    • 1 cm stands for 2 million km
    • 1 cm stands for 3 million km
    • 1 cm stands for 1 million km
    • 1 cm stands for 0.5 million km

12. Use this

    Table (NASA Planetary Fact Sheet), with columns Planet and Millions of km, average distance from the Sun in millions of km: Earth 149.6; Jupiter 778.5; Saturn 1,432.0. Note: 1 AU = 149.6 million km.

13. 9.

    Astronomers measure in AU: 1 AU is Earth's distance, 149.6 million km. Saturn is 1,432.0 million km out. About how many AU is that, by Tala's math?

    • About 6 AU, one step past Jupiter
    • About 1,432 AU
    • About 9.6 AU
    • About 0.1 AU
14. 10.

    no scale given. A textbook drawing shows all eight planets in a neat row with equal spaces. What should Zee say about it?

    • It fits the page but hides how far apart the outer planets are
    • It should show Saturn bigger than Jupiter
    • It is to scale, so the gaps are real
    • The planets really are about evenly spaced