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The choice of solar mass, M β, as the basic unit for planetary mass comes directly from the calculations used to determine planetary mass.In the most precise case, that of the Earth itself, the mass is known in terms of solar masses to twelve significant figures: the same mass, in terms of kilograms or other Earth-based units, is only known to five significant figures, which is less than a ...
The value of G times the mass of an object, called the standard gravitational parameter, is known for the Sun and several planets to a much higher accuracy than G alone. [13] As a result, the solar mass is used as the standard mass in the astronomical system of units.
An Earth mass (denoted as M π¨, M β or M E, where π¨ and β are the astronomical symbols for Earth), is a unit of mass equal to the mass of the planet Earth.The current best estimate for the mass of Earth is M π¨ = 5.9722 Γ 10 24 kg, with a relative uncertainty of 10 β4. [2]
Gravitational "weight" is the force created when a mass is acted upon by a gravitational field and the object is not allowed to free-fall, but is supported or retarded by a mechanical force, such as the surface of a planet. Such a force constitutes weight. [2] This force can be added to by any other kind of force.
The radii of these objects range over three orders of magnitude, from planetary-mass objects like dwarf planets and some moons to the planets and the Sun. This list does not include small Solar System bodies , but it does include a sample of possible planetary-mass objects whose shapes have yet to be determined.
For the giant planets, the "radius" is defined as the distance from the center at which the atmosphere reaches 1 bar of atmospheric pressure. [ 11 ] Because Sedna and 2002 MS 4 have no known moons, directly determining their mass is impossible without sending a probe (estimated to be from 1.7x10 21 to 6.1Γ10 21 kg for Sedna [ 12 ] ).
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The Jupiter mass, also called Jovian mass, is the unit of mass equal to the total mass of the planet Jupiter. This value may refer to the mass of the planet alone, or the mass of the entire Jovian system to include the moons of Jupiter. Jupiter is by far the most massive planet in the Solar System. It is approximately 2.5 times as massive as ...