Question

The table shows properties of some planets in the solar system. Property Venus Earth Mars Jupiter Saturn Neptune Average Distance from the Sun (AU) 0.72 1.0 1.5 5.2 9.5 30 Length of Year (Earth years) 0.62 1.0 1.9 11.9 29.4 164.8 Time for One Rotation (Earth days) 243 1.0 1.03 0.41 0.44 0.67 Mass (compared to Earth) 0.80 1.0 0.1 318 95 17 Surface Gravity (compared to Earth) 0.90 1.0 0.38 2.53 1.06 1.14 Size (compared to Earth) 0.94 1.0 0.53 11.0 9.1 3.9 Average Surface Temperature (ºC) 462 14 –62 –145 –140 –214 Number of Moons 0 1 2 79 82 14 The planet Uranus is between Saturn and Neptune. What is a reasonable estimate for the distance, in AU, from Uranus to the sun? (1 point) Responses 20 20 4 4 32 32 8

Answer 1

To estimate the average distance of Uranus from the Sun, we can look at the average distances of Saturn and Neptune, which are 9.5 AU and 30 AU, respectively. Since Uranus is located between these two planets, a reasonable estimate for its distance from the Sun would be the average of these two values.

Calculating the average gives us:

\[ \text{Average Distance} = \frac{\text{Distance for Saturn} + \text{Distance for Neptune}}{2} = \frac{9.5 + 30}{2} = \frac{39.5}{2} = 19.75 \text{ AU} \]

Given the available options and rounding, the closest reasonable estimate is 20 AU.