Pluto

11/14/2023 9:32:59 AM
Image: NASA

Do you know?

  • Did you know Pluto has five moons? Charon is the biggest, but there's also Nix, Hydra, Kerberos, and Styx, each with their own unique features.
  • Pluto takes 248 years to orbit the sun! That means a year on Pluto is like 248 Earth years – talk about a long birthday!

Let's explore the world of Pluto!

Let's learn some new words before you read the passage:

Read and answer the following questions.

Image: NASA

Pluto is the planet that is usually the farthest from our sun in our solar system. A scientist named Clyde W. Tombaugh accidentally discovered Pluto in 1930. Clyde was working at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona. He did a very thorough search of the night sky and realized there was another planet in the solar system.

Every 248 Earth years, Pluto completes an orbit around the Sun, following a unique path. For 20 of these years, it gets closer to the Sun than Neptune. This means that sometimes Neptune is the farthest planet from the sun, yet at most other times, Pluto is. The irregularity of Pluto's orbit starts the debate about its true nature, with some people thinking it resembles an asteroid or comet more than a planet.

It's about 3.6 billion miles away from the Sun, and it has a thin atmosphere composed mostly of nitrogen, methane, and carbon monoxide. On average, Pluto’s temperature is -232°C.

Pluto is orbited by five known moons, the largest of which is Charon. Charon is about half the size of Pluto itself, making it the largest satellite relative to the planet it orbits in our solar system.

A likely reason people may think Pluto is an asteroid or comet is because of _____.

  • its high rotating speed
  • its location within the asteroid belt
  • its predictable pattern
  • its abnormal orbit

Which of the following statements is NOT mentioned in the passage?

  • Pluto's discovery was an accidental find.
  • The discovery was made at the Lowell Observatory.
  • Pluto's discovery helped Clyde become famous.
  • Pluto was discovered in 1930.

What can be referred from the third paragraph?

  • Pluto's atmosphere cannot sustain life.
  • Pluto's atmosphere is richer in nitrogen than earth.
  • Pluto's temperature is slightly below 0°C.
  • Pluto's atmosphere receive no sun's rays.

What is the size of Pluto's largest moon?

  • It is one-fourth the size of Pluto.
  • It is about half the size of Pluto.
  • It is the same size as the Pluto.
  • It is about twice as big as Pluto.

What is a unique feature of Pluto's orbit?

  • For part of Pluto's orbit, it is closer to the Sun.
  • Pluto's orbit is completely inside Neptune's one.
  • Pluto's orbit intersects with Earth's orbit every 248 years.
  • Pluto takes the longest time to complete an orbit.

Build your vocabulary by learning these intensive phrases/idioms:

I think you should consider a career change, because this job has been _____.

  • putting years on you
  • watching the clock
  • acting your age
  • talking a mile a minute

I have no idea what the professor said during today's lecture because I was on another _____ the whole time.

  • planet
  • earth
  • globe
  • star

Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first one, using the word in brackets. You must use between TWO and FIVE words, including the word given. Do NOT change the word given.

Eager to excel in motherhood, she has explored all the books on parenting she could find. (SUN)

=> She's read every parenting , in her quest to be the best mother she can be.

He played the guitar for hours, trying to get the sadness out of his _____ through music.

  • system
  • subject
  • vessel
  • memory