By analyzing radioactive elements in meteorites, astronomers determined that the solar system formed 4.6 billion years ago from the gravitational collapse of a giant molecular cloud. This cloud collapsed over millions of years to form a rotating disk with the sun at the center. The planets formed from this disk, with the inner rocky planets closer to the sun and the outer gas giants farther away. In around 5 billion years, the Milky Way will collide with the Andromeda galaxy, and the solar system will be about 100,000 light years from the center of the new merged galaxy.

1. How was our solar system created and what is going to happen in the future?? By: Joshua Wildman

2. By analyzing the radioactive decay of radioactive elements in the our solar systems meteorites, astronomers have said that the beginning of the Solar System can be tracked back to 4.6 billion years ago. This was when a gravitational collapse of a small part of a giant molecular cloud happened. Molecular Cloud

3. The cloud collapsed for millions of years until it formed a rotating disk with a large central bulge. The disk would eventually form the planets, and out of the central bulge where most of the mass wound up, formed the sun. Where the sun formed

4. The Planets

5. The four innermost planets in the Solar System; Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. They are separated from the outer planets by the asteroid belt. The inner planets are rocky and smaller than the outer planets. Mars has the longest year, 687 days.

6. Outer planets are mostly hydrogen and helium. They also have a lot of moons because they have such a big gravitational force. Jupiter has 63 named natural satellites. Neptune has the longest year, and is the planet farthest away from the sun, its year is 165 earth years.

7. The planets of our solar system(and Pluto, a dwarf planet)

8. About 5 billion years from now, Andromeda and the Milky Way will have completely combined to create a single, football-shaped elliptical galaxy. The Sun will be an old star near the end of its lifetime. It and the solar system likely will be about 100,000 light-years from the center of the new galaxy, 4 times further than the current 25,000 light-year distance.

9. When we start to collide, it might look something like this.

10. And after we might look something like this.

11. &quot;How was the Sun formed?.&quot; The Astronomy Cafe : Dr. Sten Odenwald - A resource for learning about astronomy . N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Jan. 2011. <http://www.astronomycafe.net/qadir/ask/a11379.html>. &quot;Rocky Inner Planets.&quot; SolStation.com . N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Jan. 2011. <http://www.solstation.com/stars/4planets.htm>. &quot;Rocky Inner Planets.&quot; SolStation.com . N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Jan. 2011. <http://www.solstation.com/stars/4planets.htm>. &quot;When Galaxies Collide, Our Solar System Will Go For A Ride.&quot; Science Daily: News & Articles in Science, Health, Environment & Technology . N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Jan. 2011. <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/05/070529091407.htm>. meteorites, analyzing the radioactive decay of radioactive elements in the, and astronomers have said that the origin of the Solar System. &quot;How Was the Solar System Formed.&quot; Buzzle Web Portal: Intelligent Life on the Web . N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Jan. 2011. <http://www.buzzle.com/articles/how-was-the-solar-system-formed.html>.