The Solar System In 5 minutes

For more information and images about this video please visit http://talesofcuriosity.com/v/ThePlan... is abridged text from our site:

In an amazing 5 minutes travel through the solar system, breaking all the laws of physics.

Our journey begins at the center of the Solar System, as we fly past the Sun. 75% of the Sun's mass consists of hydrogen, the rest is made up mainly of helium with less than 2% comprised of other elements. Much of the Sun's behaviour is still unexplained. It has 332,900 times more mass than Earth. The Sun resides in the Orion Arm of the Milky Way Galaxy, 26,000 light-years from the center of the galaxy.

We pass by our first planet Mercury, the smallest in the Solar System. Jupiter's moon Ganymede & Saturn's moon Titan are larger. It looks similar to our moon, having many craters. Mercury is named after the Roman messenger of the Gods, due to the speed it moves through our sky.

The next planet we encounter is Venus, often called Earth's twin. Both planets are similar in size & mass. Venus is named after the Roman Goddess of love & beauty. In the past it is believed to have an atmosphere & oceans similar to those on Earth today. However, Venus is now the hottest planet in the Solar System.

After passing by Venus we visit Earth, largest of the four innermost planets. Gaia is the Greek Goddess of Earth, known as the "Blue Planet", as 71% of our surface is covered with oceans. Orbiting Earth is the Moon, the fifth largest moon in the Solar System. Believed to be the result of a huge object striking Earth. The massive impact blasted material into space forming the moon.

Next, we pass by Mars, called the "Red Planet", due to iron oxide on the surface giving it a reddish-orange color. Mars is named after the Roman God Of War. It is home to the tallest volcano on the Solar System, Olympus Mons & has the largest canyon, Valles Marineris. Mars has two moons, Phobos & Deimos. Both are small & irregularly shaped possibly asteroids captured by its gravity.

We are about to pass through the Asteroid Belt, composed of ancient material from the Solar System's birth. Even though we have identified hundreds of thousands of asteroids, with probably millions yet to be discovered, this is not as dangerous as commonly thought. Asteroids are spread over a vast area, so we would be very unlucky to collide with one.

We noe encounter Jupiter, the largest planet in the Solar System. It is 2.5 times as big as all the other planets combined, but has only 1000th the mass of the Sun. It is named after the Roman King of the Gods. The best known feature of Jupiter is the Great Red Spot, an enormous storm, believed to have been in existence for at least 400 years. In 1610, Galileo Galilei, using an early telescope discovered 4 moons orbiting Jupiter. They are called Io, Europa, Ganymede & Callisto. Jupiter has at least 63 moons.

We arrive at Saturn, the second largest planet. The most famous feature of Saturn a system of rings. The rings are composed mainly of ice particles, with small rocks & dust. It is named after the Roman God of Agriculture. Orbiting Saturn are 61 moons, one of which is Enceladus, discovered by William Herschel in 1789.

Our next destination is reached, Uranus. March 13 1781, Sir William Herschel recorded his sighting of the planet. Although Uranus had been observed before, it was assumed to be a star. Initially Herschel thought he had discovered a comet, but soon realized Uranus was a planet. It is the first planet discovered in modern times & is named after the Greek God of the Sky. We pass close by Titania, one of Uranus's 27 moons. All of Uranus's moons are named after characters from the works of William Shakespeare & Alexander Pope.

Our journey is nearly complete as we pass by Neptune, discovered September 23 1846. Neptune is named after the Roman God of water & the sea. It has 13 known moons. Of these Triton is the largest, comprising of 99.5% of all the mass in orbit around Neptune. It is believed Triton was originally a dwarf planet, captured by Neptune's gravity.

We enter the Kuiper Belt, far on the outskirts of the Solar System. It is similar, but much bigger than the asteroid belt & made up of small frozen bodies, ancient remnants from the Solar System's formation. The Kuiper belt has 3 known dwarf planets Pluto, Haumea & Makemake.

We reach Pluto, classified a dwarf planet, mainly composed of rock & ice. Although small, about the third of our moon's volume, it is the largest known object in the Kuiper belt. Slight changes in Neptune's orbit, meant some astronomers believed there was a planet responsible. They called this Planet X. In 1930, Clyde Tombaugh discovered the new planet, named after the Roman God of the Underworld. Despite being tiny Pluto, has 3 moons Charon, Nix & Hydra.

Our tour is sadly at an end. We hope you had an enjoyable journey & will join us on further adventures.