How to set up a to scale model of the distances between planets of the Solar System on a football field

Here are the distances of the planets from the sun:

Mercury: 57 million km
Venus: 108 million km
Earth: 150 million km
Mars: 228 million km
Jupiter: 779 million km
Saturn: 1430 million km
Uranus: 2880 million km
Neptune: 4500 million km

The best thing to do is take the distance of the planets from the sun, divide it by 4500 and multiply by 100m. This will give you the distances away from one end of the pitch you need to place the planets.

So for Saturn for example, 1430/4500 x 100 = 32m.

If you are planning on placing the Sun in the middle of the pitch, multiply it by 50 instead.

Hope I've helped!

To represent the true majesty of the solar system you should aim for a 1:1 ratio. You may need more than one football field, however, but that's only to be expected.

The Lakeview Planetarium in Peoria IL has the world's largest and most detailed scale model. Their website carries directions and ideas