Talk:Solar system model
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[edit] Astrology
I've attempted to clean up the article. Please indicate any further concerns. --agr 19:24, 17 Jun 2005 (UTC)
- The part at the end that starts sermonizing about astrology is inappropriate. I'll snip it out myself if no one objects. Thedoorhinge 23:59, 14 October 2006 (UTC)
- The concept that the section attempts to explain is very valid, and should be retained. The text is, however, very poorly written and should be completely rethought. There is text on the Solar Sytem page that could be incorporated here. --Ckatzchatspy 04:23, 15 October 2006 (UTC)
- Even if the concept is valid, it presents an opinion- that astrology flourishes on misconceptions. That isn't for Wikipedia to take a stance on. I'll remove it, if someone wants to find a source of someone significant saying it and put it back as "according to X, misconceptions like this are what allow astrology to flourish" then go ahead.Thedoorhinge 14:34, 15 October 2006 (UTC)
- The concept that the section attempts to explain is very valid, and should be retained. The text is, however, very poorly written and should be completely rethought. There is text on the Solar Sytem page that could be incorporated here. --Ckatzchatspy 04:23, 15 October 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Mental Model
What is the best simple mental model of the solar system?
If the goal is a rough mental model of the planet spacing, there are two sets of planets:
The Inner Planets Mercury Venus Earth Mars 0.4 0.7 1.0 1.5 The Outer Planets Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune (Pluto) 5 10 19 30 39
Each set is spaced quite evenly. The inner planets are spaced at about 0.3 astronomical units. The outer planets are spaced at about 10 AU. The key mental concept is that the four inner planets are closely spaced, and the outer planets are spaced about 30 times farther apart.
What is the best simple mental model of the planet sizes?
Mercury, Venus and Mars are "a little smaller" than Earth (0.4 to .95 diameter). Jupiter and Saturn are "about ten times" (11 and 9 times dia). Uranus and Neptune are 4 times bigger. Pluto is one-fifth dia. (The difference in masses is greater than the difference in diameters.) The Sun is 100 times the dia of Earth. The distance from the Earth to the Sun is about 100 times the dia of the Sun. The solar system is almost all empty space -- the sun is small compared to the distances between, and everything else is extremely small. -69.87.203.252 12:35, 20 March 2007 (UTC)
