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The Peppercorn Model,
also known as the Thousand Yard Model,
is a scale model of the solar system
which shows
the relative sizes of the planets and
the distances between them at the same time using the same linear scale.
At this scale the Sun is about the size of a soccer ball,
the Earth is about the size of a peppercorn,
and Pluto is a grain of salt about 1000 yards from the Sun.
As you walk among the planets you will not just see but also
feel the vast emptiness of space even in our own solar system.
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Solar System Object |
Model Object and Diameter |
Distance† (in AU) |
Added Distance |
Total Distance |
|
Object |
inches |
mm |
AU |
yards |
meters |
yards |
meters |
Sun
|
a soccer ball |
8.7'' |
22 cm |
0.00 |
|
|
0 yd | 0 m |
Mercury
|
a pin head |
0.030'' |
0.8 mm |
0.39 |
+10 yd |
+9 m |
10 yd | 9 m |
Venus
|
a peppercorn |
0.075'' |
1.9 mm |
0.72 |
+9 yd |
+8 m |
19 yd | 17 m |
Earth
|
a peppercorn |
0.079'' |
2.0 mm |
1.00 |
+7 yd |
+7 m |
26 yd | 24 m |
Mars
|
a pin head |
0.042'' |
1.1 mm |
1.52 |
+14 yd |
+12 m |
39 yd | 36 m |
*Ceres
|
a grain of salt |
0.006'' |
0.15 mm |
2.77 |
+32 yd |
+29 m |
72 yd | 65 m |
Jupiter
|
a walnut, or chestnut |
0.89'' |
23 mm |
5.20 |
+63 yd |
+57 m |
134 yd | 123 m |
Saturn
|
an acorn or hazelnut |
0.75'' |
19 mm |
9.58 |
+113 yd |
+103 m |
247 yd | 226 m |
Uranus
|
a coffee bean |
0.318'' |
8 mm |
19.20 |
+249 yd |
+228 m |
497 yd | 454 m |
Neptune
|
a coffee bean |
0.308'' |
8 mm |
30.10 |
+281 yd |
+257 m |
777 yd | 711 m |
*Pluto
|
a grain of salt |
0.014'' |
0.36 mm |
34.60 |
+116 yd |
+106 m |
893 yd | 817 m |
*Haumea
|
a grain of salt |
0.008'' |
0.20 mm |
50.50 |
+410 yd |
+375 m |
1303 yd | 1191 m |
*Makemake
|
a grain of salt |
0.009'' |
0.23 mm |
52.50 |
+53 yd |
+49 m |
1356 yd | 1240 m |
*Sedna
|
a grain of salt |
0.012'' |
0.31 mm |
84.00 |
+812 yd |
+743 m |
2169 yd | 1983 m |
*Gonggong
|
a grain of salt |
0.015'' |
0.39 mm |
88.00 |
+103 yd |
+94 m |
2272 yd | 2078 m |
*Eris
|
a grain of salt |
0.014'' |
0.37 mm |
96.10 |
+209 yd |
+191 m |
2481 yd | 2269 m |
*dwarf planets |
Model Object |
Diameter |
Distance (in AU)
† semi-major axis |
Added Distance |
Total Distance |
Scale: 1 inch = 100,000 miles
--
On this scale the nearest star, Proxima Centauri,
would be about 4,000 miles away!
1 AU = 1
Astronomical Unit
= average (mean) distance between the Earth and the Sun
1 AU = 1.4960 × 1011 meters
= 9.2956 × 107 miles
†
The orbits of the planets are elipses, not circles, so the size reported here
is the semi-major axis, except for Pluto. The distance reported for Pluto
is the actual distance from the Sun in August 2022, and will be updated from
time to time.
Sites
-
Walkway over the Hudson, between Poughkeepsie and Highland, NY
-
SUNY College at New Paltz, New York
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U.S. Military Academy, West Point, NY
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Marist College, Poughkeepsie, NY
-
Dutchess County Rail Trail, Morgan Lake, Poughkeepsie, New York
-
Ulster County Fairgrounds, New Paltz, NY
-
Riverfront City Park, Salem, Oregon
References
-
The Thousand-Yard Model or, the Earth as a Peppercorn
by Guy Ottewell
-
The Thousand-Yard Model or, The Earth as a Peppercorn
from NOIRLab - the National Optical-Infrared Astronomy
Research Laboratory (previously hosted by NOAO - the National Optical
Astronomy Observaotry).
-
The Peppercorn Model of the Solar System
a presentation by Eric Myers for the joint meeting of the New
York, New Jersey, and New England sections of the American
Association of Physics Teachers, held at Marist College on
Sept. 28th 2013.
Other Resources
-
Sagan Planet Walk in downtown Ithaca, New York
- Voyage Model Solar
System
on the Capital Mall in Washington, D.C.
-
Other solar system models (from Wikipedia)
-
SOLAR SYSTEM Passport to the Planets - A Scale Model of the Solar System
- Student activiy for 4th, 5th, and 6th grade students
-
Scales of the Universe
- relative sizes of all things large and small
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If the Moon were only one Pixel
- a tediously accurate scale model of the solar system
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To Scale: The Solar System -
On a dry lakebed in Nevada, a group of friends build the first scale
model of the solar system with complete planetary orbits
-
Lightspeed Model of the Solar System
- an alternative model of the solar system where the planets are
arranged by the time it takes light from the Sun to reach them.
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