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solar system
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References & Edit History Related Topics
Images, Videos & Interactives
solar system solar system orbits
Understand the relative size of the Sun, the Moon, and other solar system objects
solar system to scale Jovian planets Gaspra Comet Wild 2
Hear about the band of dust and debris left by comets, which are visible as meteors (shooting stars)
Discover how the solar system, which started as a shapeless spherical blob ended up being flat
For Students
solar system to scale
solar system summary
Quizzes
View of the Andromeda Galaxy (Messier 31, M31).
Astronomy and Space Quiz
The orbits of the planets and other elements of the solar system, including asteroids, Kuiper belt, Oort cloud, comet
Space Odyssey
Ursa major constellation illustration art. (Big Dipper) stars, space, night sky)
Stars: Explosions in Space
Saturn. Saturn and its rings. Second largest planet of the solar system. Space Art
Planets and the Earth’s Moon
Nicolaus Copernicus. Nicolas Copernicus (1473-1543) Polish astronomer. In 1543 he published, forward proof of a Heliocentric (sun centered) universe. Coloured stipple engraving published London 1802. De revolutionibus orbium coelestium libri vi.
All About Astronomy
Related Questions
Read Next
Solar system illustration. (planets; sun)
Why Are Planets Round?
Background: abstract bubble planets with clouds. astrology, astronomy, atomosphere, big bang, bubbles, fantasy, future, galaxy, universe, stars
9 Ghostly Planets
Colorful winter sunset
What's the Difference Between a Solstice and an Equinox?
Specially designed Cassini orbits place Earth and Cassini on opposite sides of Saturn's rings, a geometry known as occultation. Cassini conducted the first radio occultation observation of Saturn's rings on May 3, 2005. (solar system, planets)
10 Places to Visit in the Solar System
Remarkable new details of Pluto's largest moon Charon are revealed in this image from New Horizons' Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI), taken late on July 13, 2015 from a distance of 289,000 miles
Why Is Pluto No Longer a Planet?
Discover
Aphrodite. Greek mythology. Sculpture. Aphrodite is the Greek goddess of love and beauty.
12 Greek Gods and Goddesses
Bar graph of the United States Death Toll during major events. Infogram chart.
U.S. Death Toll During Major Events
Statue of Liberty in front of the skyline of Manhattan, New York City, New York.
Who Was the Woman Behind the Statue of Liberty?
World map. Continents. Oceans. Mendel thumb ok
Just How Many Oceans Are There?
Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), Italian Renaissance painter from Florence. Engraving by Cosomo Colombini (d. 1812) after a Leonardo self portrait. Ca. 1500.
10 Famous Artworks by Leonardo da Vinci
Camel at Khor Rori, Oman; mammal.
Do Camels Store Water in Their Humps?
An ancient egyptian hieroglyphic painted carving showing the falcon headed god Horus seated on a throne and holding a golden fly whisk. Before him are the Pharoah Seti and the goddess Isis. Interior wall of the temple to Osiris at Abydos, Egypt.
11 Egyptian Gods and Goddesses

solar system: Related Content

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News •

128 New Moons Found Orbiting Saturn in Mindblowing Discovery • Mar. 11, 2025, 7:54 PM ET (ScienceAlert)
Unknown spiral structure discovered at the edge of our solar system • Mar. 10, 2025, 1:53 PM ET (Earth.com)
Seven planets share the sky this week, but the parade ends soon • Feb. 28, 2025, 6:29 AM ET (NBC)
Rare planetary alignment visible this week: Thai astronomers • Feb. 27, 2025, 4:40 AM ET (The Star)
Surprise Spiral Shape Revealed in The Darkness Surrounding The Solar System • Feb. 24, 2025, 11:01 AM ET (ScienceAlert)

Photos and Videos

solar system
orbits
solar system to scale
Jovian planets
Gaspra
Comet Wild 2
solar system
Saturn
Images taken with the Hubble Space Telescope of four protoplanetary disks around young stars in the Orion Nebula.
Nicolaus Copernicus: heliocentric system
Understand the relative size of the Sun, the Moon, and other solar system objects
Hear about the band of dust and debris left by comets, which are visible as meteors (shooting stars)
Discover how the solar system, which started as a shapeless spherical blob ended up being flat
View an animation of a brown dwarf surrounded by a swirling disk of planet-building dust
Copernicus's revolutionary theory: The Sun as the center
See All Videos, Images and Interactives →

Related Topics and References

Topics
Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic

Key People

Johannes Kepler
Johannes Kepler
German astronomer
Galileo
Galileo
Italian philosopher, astronomer and mathematician
Harold C. Urey
American chemist
Laplace, Pierre-Simon, marquis de
Pierre-Simon, marquis de Laplace
French scientist and mathematician
Gerard Peter Kuiper
American astronomer
Sir Harold Jeffreys
Sir Harold Jeffreys
British astronomer and geophysicist
Jean Richer
French astronomer
Johann Elert Bode
German astronomer
Audouin Dollfus
French astronomer

Related Quizzes and Features

Quiz
Nicolaus Copernicus. Nicolas Copernicus (1473-1543) Polish astronomer. In 1543 he published, forward proof of a Heliocentric (sun centered) universe. Coloured stipple engraving published London 1802. De revolutionibus orbium coelestium libri vi.
All About Astronomy
Ursa major constellation illustration art. (Big Dipper) stars, space, night sky)
Stars: Explosions in Space
View of the Andromeda Galaxy (Messier 31, M31).
Astronomy and Space Quiz
Nicolaus Copernicus. Nicolas Copernicus (1473-1543) Polish astronomer. In 1543 he published, forward proof of a Heliocentric (sun centered) universe. Coloured stipple engraving published London 1802. De revolutionibus orbium coelestium libri vi.
All About Astronomy
View of the Andromeda Galaxy (Messier 31, M31).
Astronomy and Space Quiz
Saturn. Saturn and its rings. Second largest planet of the solar system. Space Art
Planets and the Earth’s Moon
The orbits of the planets and other elements of the solar system, including asteroids, Kuiper belt, Oort cloud, comet
Space Odyssey
Encyclopaedia Britannica thistle graphic to be used with a Mendel/Consumer quiz in place of a photograph.
36 Questions from Britannica’s Most Popular Science Quizzes
Planet Neptune
Giants of Our Solar System
Demystified
Remarkable new details of Pluto's largest moon Charon are revealed in this image from New Horizons' Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI), taken late on July 13, 2015 from a distance of 289,000 miles
Why Is Pluto No Longer a Planet?
Solar system illustration. (planets; sun)
Why Are Planets Round?
Colorful winter sunset
What's the Difference Between a Solstice and an Equinox?