Planet Compare - NASA Solar System Exploration NASA’s real-time science encyclopedia of deep space exploration Our scientists and far-ranging robots explore the wild frontiers of our solar system
In Depth | Our Solar System – NASA Solar System Exploration The planetary system we call home is located in an outer spiral arm of the Milky Way galaxy Our solar system consists of our star, the Sun, and everything bound to it by gravity – the planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune; dwarf planets such as Pluto; dozens of moons; and millions of asteroids, comets, and meteoroids Beyond our own solar system, there
RPS 3D Viewer - NASA Solar System Exploration NASA’s real-time science encyclopedia of deep space exploration Our scientists and far-ranging robots explore the wild frontiers of our solar system
In Depth | Moons – NASA Solar System Exploration Of the terrestrial (rocky) planets of the inner solar system, neither Mercury nor Venus have any moons at all, Earth has one and Mars has its two small moons In the outer solar system, the gas giants Jupiter and Saturn and the ice giants Uranus and Neptune have dozens of moons
Solar System Exploration Solar System Facts Our solar system includes the Sun, eight planets, five officially named dwarf planets, hundreds of moons, and thousands of asteroids and comets Our solar system is located in the Milky Way, a barred spiral galaxy with two major arms, and two minor arms
In Depth | Ganymede – NASA Solar System Exploration Jupiter’s moon Ganymede is proving to be a fascinating world Not only is it the largest moon in our solar system, bigger than the planet Mercury and the dwarf planet Pluto, but NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has found the best evidence yet for an underground saltwater ocean on Ganymede The ocean is thought to have more water than all the water on Earth's surface Ganymede’s ocean is
In Depth | Sun – NASA Solar System Exploration The Sun orbits the center of the Milky Way, bringing with it the planets, asteroids, comets, and other objects in our solar system Our solar system is moving with an average velocity of 450,000 miles per hour (720,000 kilometers per hour)
In Depth | Earths Moon – NASA Solar System Exploration That means 30 Earth-sized planets could fit in between Earth and the Moon The Moon is slowly moving away from Earth, getting about an inch farther away each year Orbit and Rotation The Moon is rotating at the same rate that it revolves around Earth (called synchronous rotation), so the same hemisphere faces Earth all the time