Figure out which distance corresponds to each planet and fill out the following table. Remember that Mercury is the innermost planet, so it has the shortest distance to the sun. The image above shows that Venus is the planet second nearest the sun. Which planet is third?
In order to determine which planet is third nearest to the sun, we can refer to the table and find the corresponding distances.
| Planet | Distance from the Sun (in AU) |
|-------------|------------------------------------|
| Mercury | 0.39 AU |
| Venus | 0.72 AU |
| [Third] | [Unknown] |
| Earth | [Unknown] |
| Mars | [Unknown] |
From the given information, we know that Mercury is the innermost planet with a distance of 0.39 AU, and Venus is the planet second nearest the sun with a distance of 0.72 AU. Therefore, the planet third nearest to the sun is Earth.