The solar system

in space •  7 years ago  (edited)

Take a look at our solar system, and their unique planets

Learn the most important information about the other planets in less than 5 minutes

Here all the planets of the solar system at a glance

Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun and due to its proximity it is not easily seen except during twilight. For every two orbits of the Sun, Mercury completes three rotations about its axis and up until 1965 it was thought that the same side of Mercury constantly faced the Sun. Thirteen times a century Mercury can be observed from the Earth passing across the face of the Sun in an eve

Mercury Planet Profile
Diameter: 4,879 km
Mass: 3.30 x 10^23 kg (5.5% Earth)
Moons: None
Orbit Distance: 57,909,227 km (0.39 AU)
Orbit Period: 88 days
Surface Temperature: -173 to 427°C
First Record: 14th century BC
Recorded By: Assyrian astronomers

Venus is the second planet from the Sun and is the second brightest object in the night sky after the Moon. Named after the Roman goddess of love and beauty, Venus is the second largest terrestrial planet and is sometimes referred to as the Earth’s sister planet due the their similar size and mass. The surface of the planet is obscured by an opaque layer of clouds made up of sulphuric acid.

Venus Planet Profile
Diameter: 12,104 km
Mass: 4.87 x 10^24 kg (81.5% Earth)
Moons: None
Orbit Distance: 108,209,475 km (0.73 AU)
Orbit Period: 225 days
Surface Temperature: 462 °C
First Record: 17th century BC
Recorded By: Babylonian astronomers

Earth is the third planet from the Sun and is the largest of the terrestrial planets. The Earth is the only planet in our solar system not to be named after a Greek or Roman deity. The Earth was formed approximately 4.54 billion years ago and is the only known planet to support life.

Earth Planet Profile
Equatorial Diameter: 12,756 km
Polar Diameter: 12,714 km
Mass: 5.97 x 10^24 kg
Moons: 1 (The Moon)
Orbit Distance: 149,598,262 km (1 AU)
Orbit Period: 365.24 days
Surface Temperature: -88 to 58°C

Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and is the second smallest planet in the solar system. Named after the Roman god of war, Mars is also often described as the “Red Planet” due to its reddish appearance. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin atmosphere composed primarily of carbon dioxide.

Mars Planet Profile
Equatorial Diameter: 6,792 km
Polar Diameter: 6,752 km
Mass: 6.42 x 10^23 kg (10.7% Earth)
Moons: 2 (Phobos & Deimos)
Orbit Distance: 227,943,824 km (1.52 AU)
Orbit Period: 687 days (1.9 years)
Surface Temperature: -153 to 20 °C
First Record: 2nd millennium BC
Recorded By: Egyptian astronomers

The planet Jupiter is the fifth planet out from the Sun, and is two and a half times more massive than all the other planets in the solar system combined. It is made primarily of gases and is therefore known as a “gas giant”.

Jupiter Planet Profile
Equatorial Diameter: 142,984 km
Polar Diameter: 133,709 km
Mass: 1.90 × 10^27 kg (318 Earths)
Moons: 67 (Io, Europa, Ganymede & Callisto)
Rings: 4
Orbit Distance: 778,340,821 km (5.20 AU)
Orbit Period: 4,333 days (11.9 years)
Effective Temperature: -148 °C
First Record: 7th or 8th century BC
Recorded By: Babylonian astronomers

Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the most distant that can be seen with the naked eye. Saturn is the second largest planet and is best known for its fabulous ring system that was first observed in 1610 by the astronomer Galileo Galilei. Like Jupiter, Saturn is a gas giant and is composed of similar gasses including hydrogen, helium and methane.

Saturn Planet Profile
Equatorial Diameter: 120,536 km
Polar Diameter: 108,728 km
Mass: 5.68 × 10^26 kg (95 Earths)
Moons: 62 (Titan, Enceladus, Iapetus & Rhea)
Rings: 30+ (7 Groups)
Orbit Distance: 1,426,666,422 km (9.54 AU)
Orbit Period: 10,756 days (29.5 years)
Effective Temperature: -178 °C
First Record: 8th century BC
Recorded By: Assyrians

Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun. While being visible to the naked eye, it was not recognised as a planet due to its dimness and slow orbit. Uranus became the first planet discovered with the use of a telescope. Uranus is tipped over on its side with an axial tilt of 98 degrees. It is often described as “rolling around the Sun on its side.”

Uranus Planet Profile
Equatorial Diameter: 51,118 km
Polar Diameter: 49,946 km
Mass: 8.68 × 10^25 kg (15 Earths)
Moons: 27 (Miranda, Titania, Ariel, Umbriel & Oberon)
Rings: 13
Orbit Distance: 2,870,658,186 km (19.19 AU)
Orbit Period: 30,687 days (84.0 years)
Effective Temperature: -216 °C
Discovery Date: March 13th 1781
Discovered By: William Herschel

Neptune is the eighth planet from the Sun making it the most distant in the solar system. This gas giant planet may have formed much closer to the Sun in early solar system history before migrating to its present position.

Neptune Planet Profile
Equatorial Diameter: 49,528 km
Polar Diameter: 48,682 km
Mass: 1.02 × 10^26 kg (17 Earths)
Moons: 14 (Triton)
Rings: 5
Orbit Distance: 4,498,396,441 km (30.10 AU)
Orbit Period: 60,190 days (164.8 years)
Effective Temperature: -214 °C
Discovery Date: September 23rd 1846
Discovered By: Urbain Le Verrier & Johann Galle

Discovered in 1930, Pluto is the second closest dwarf planet to the Sun and was at one point classified as the ninth planet. Pluto is the largest dwarf planet but only the second most massive, with Eris being the most massive.

Pluto Dwarf Planet Profile
Diameter: 2,372 km
Mass: 1.31 × 10^22 kg (0.17 Moons)
Orbit Distance: 5,874,000,000 km (39.26 AU)
Orbit Period: 248.0 years
Surface Temperature: -229°C
Moons: 5 (Charon)
Discovery Date: February 18th 1930
Discovered By: Clyde W. Tombaugh

For all hobby astrologers here is a page with more information

----->space-facts.com

I hope you enjoyed it :)

Authors get paid when people like you upvote their post.
If you enjoyed what you read here, create your account today and start earning FREE STEEM!