5 Most Popular Myths And Misconceptions About Our Solar System Debunked

Space is a different place and a difficult concept to represent on film. It is not just because of floating hair and upside-down camera angles. The concept of space, a low or no-gravity environment with no atmosphere and all sorts of foreign dangers, is difficult to portray accurately and still complete an engaging story.

Solar-System

Many people have some pretty big misconceptions about space. But, very few of us have ever been, there’s a lot more to study before anybody really knows what’s actually going on up there, and movies tend to give us the completely wrong idea. Still, some of cinema’s ‘facts’ have wormed their way into the popular understanding of space. This must be brought to a merciless end.

Read: NASA Reveals about Tattoos on Moon!

The Hottest Planet:

Mercury is the closest planet to the sun and that’s the hottest one in the solar system. This is obviously a myth. The distance from the sun doesn’t affect the average temperature on a planet. Mercury is the closest planet to the sun, but it doesn’t mean it the hottest planet. During the day, the temperature on the Mercury is about 801 degrees Fahrenheit (427 Celsius), but due to rotation differences.

A complete orbit of the sun for Mercury takes about 88 Earth days, while complete rotation of the planet is about 58 Earth days. This means that night lasts 58 days on the planet, giving the temperature plenty of time to drop down to a cool -279 degrees Fahrenheit (-173 Celsius). The hottest planet in the solar system is actually Venus. Its dense atmosphere which consists of Carbon Dioxide and Nitrogen keeps a lot of heat.

Dark Side Of The Moon:

When we talk about the dark side of the moon, we normally mean the side is unlit by the sun. But it would way more precise to talk about that side that isn’t seen by humans. The moon and the Earth move simultaneously it means we can only see one side of the moon from the surface of the Earth.

The dark side of the moon can’t be seen without leaving earth’s orbit. But since the moon and the earth spins around and its access the rise of the sun reach all its parts. So there isn’t actually any dark side of the moon.

Also Read: Here is Why We See Moon Even on Day-Time

The Earth Is Round:

This would seem an unarguable fact we all know from the school that the earth isn’t flat or square. Is the earth round in reality? We generally call the earth as a globe. It is also called as Geoid which is a less common word. All because of our planet is slightly at the equator and flattened at the poles. Its surface is constantly changing due to the continuous motion of tectonic plates and erosion. So the shape of the earth is pretty different from the shape of a football or a billiard ball.

Human Death In Space Without A Space Suit:

The human in space without a space suit will explode. We had seen in many Hollywood movies that when a human removes his suit in space, his face will swell and blow off. The human body would overheat if he exposes to empty space. It comes from the fact that the boiling point of any liquid has a direct relationship with the pressure of its environment. The higher the pressure, the higher the boiling point and vice versa.

The Sun Is Yellow in Colour:

Even though we see the sun as yellow, orange or red depending on the time and the position in the sky, the sun is actually White. The color of any light depends on temperature. Stars with the surface temperature of 4500 degrees Celsius or 8100 degrees Fahrenheit like our sun in it white light.

Watch: GoPro Footage Of A NASA’s Rocket Launch Into Space

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