Which characteristic best describes what the outer planets share with each other? (1 point)
They have no moons that orbit them.
They are made mostly of gaseous materials.
They are all very warm, similar to Venus.
They orbit the Sun opposite to Earth.
They are made mostly of gaseous materials.
The characteristic that best describes what the outer planets share with each other is: "They are made mostly of gaseous materials."
The best characteristic that describes what the outer planets share with each other is that they are made mostly of gaseous materials. To come to this conclusion, one can analyze the options given and eliminate those that are not accurate.
- The option "They have no moons that orbit them" is not correct. Some outer planets, like Jupiter and Saturn, have numerous moons that orbit around them, so this characteristic does not apply to all outer planets.
- The option "They are all very warm, similar to Venus" is also not accurate. Venus is known for its extreme heat, but not all outer planets have similar temperatures. In fact, outer planets like Uranus and Neptune are known to be extremely cold.
- The option "They orbit the Sun opposite to Earth" is another incorrect statement. While it is true that the outer planets have longer orbital periods than the inner planets like Earth, they do not necessarily orbit in the opposite direction.
That leaves us with the correct answer, which is "They are made mostly of gaseous materials." This characteristic is shared by all the outer planets in our solar system, namely Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. These planets are composed mostly of hydrogen and helium, unlike the inner rocky planets like Earth.