From the Sun to comet reservoirs: explore the eight planets, the five recognised dwarf planets, a selection of major moons and the families of small bodies.
The Sun
Mercury
Venus
Earth
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
Uranus
NeptuneOrder from the Sun. Sizes, distances and alignment are schematic.
31 fact sheets available.
A star of plasma whose gravity structures the Solar System. Its energy comes from nuclear fusion in its core.
Explore the fact sheet →The smallest planet and the closest to the Sun. Its cratered surface preserves the traces of ancient impacts.
Explore the fact sheet →A rocky planet similar in size to Earth, wrapped in a very dense atmosphere.
Explore the fact sheet →A rocky planet where oceans of liquid water, an atmosphere and life transform the surface.
Explore the fact sheet →A cold desert world with a thin atmosphere, giant volcanoes and vast canyons.
Explore the fact sheet →The largest planet, dominated by hydrogen and helium, with an atmosphere of bands and swirling storms.
Explore the fact sheet →A giant composed mainly of hydrogen and helium, surrounded by a spectacular ring system.
Explore the fact sheet →A blue-green ice giant with an extreme axial tilt.
Explore the fact sheet →The most distant of the eight planets, an ice giant with an atmosphere stirred by fast winds.
Explore the fact sheet →Dwarf planetThe largest object in the asteroid belt, between Mars and Jupiter, is also a dwarf planet.
Explore the fact sheet →Dwarf planetPluto combines mountains of water ice, plains of volatile ices and a tenuous atmosphere.
Explore the fact sheet →Dwarf planetAn elongated trans-Neptunian object with a very rapid rotation.
Explore the fact sheet →Dwarf planetA dwarf planet in the Kuiper Belt, much colder and more distant than the terrestrial planets.
Explore the fact sheet →Dwarf planetA distant world close to Pluto in size, accompanied by the moon Dysnomia.
Explore the fact sheet →MoonDark basaltic maria and cratered terrain tell the story of our satellite.
Explore the fact sheet →MoonThe larger of Mars’s two moons, with an irregular shape.
Explore the fact sheet →MoonMars’s smaller moon, an irregular body marked by impacts.
Explore the fact sheet →MoonThe Galilean moon famous for its intense volcanic activity.
Explore the fact sheet →MoonAn icy moon whose surface is crossed by fractures.
Explore the fact sheet →MoonThe largest moon in the Solar System, bigger than Mercury.
Explore the fact sheet →MoonA large moon with an ancient, heavily cratered surface.
Explore the fact sheet →MoonSaturn’s largest moon is enveloped in a thick atmosphere.
Explore the fact sheet →MoonA small icy moon that ejects water vapour and ice particles.
Explore the fact sheet →MoonNeptune’s main moon follows a retrograde orbit.
Explore the fact sheet →MoonPluto’s main moon is about half the diameter of its companion.
Explore the fact sheet →Moons and regionsMiranda, Ariel, Umbriel, Titania and Oberon form the group of Uranus’s five major moons.
Explore the fact sheet →Small bodiesAsteroids are small bodies, mostly rocky or metallic, that orbit the Sun.
Explore the fact sheet →Small bodiesSmall bodies rich in ices can develop a coma and tails as they approach the Sun.
Explore the fact sheet →Small bodiesA fragment in space, a luminous streak in the atmosphere, and possibly a fragment on the ground.
Explore the fact sheet →Moons and regionsA vast region beyond Neptune, populated by icy bodies including Pluto.
Explore the fact sheet →Moons and regionsAn immense reservoir of icy bodies, proposed in particular to explain the origin of long-period comets.
Explore the fact sheet →No fact sheets match. Try another word or family.
| Planet | Equatorial diameter (km) | Mean distance from the Sun (million km) | Orbital period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | 4879 | 57,9 | 88 days |
| Venus | 12104 | 108,2 | 224,7 days |
| Earth | 12756 | 149,6 | 365,2 days |
| Mars | 6792 | 228,0 | 687 days |
| Jupiter | 142984 | 778,5 | ≈ 11,9 ans |
| Saturn | 120536 | 1432,0 | ≈ 29,4 ans |
| Uranus | 51118 | 2867,0 | ≈ 84 ans |
| Neptune | 49528 | 4515,0 | ≈ 165 ans |
Rounded values, Earth time. Source: NASA/NSSDCA. Periods may vary slightly between tables depending on conventions and rounding.
Both orbit the Sun and are massive enough to reach a shape close to equilibrium. A planet has also become gravitationally dominant in the neighbourhood of its orbit; a dwarf planet has not, and is not a satellite.
Understand the classification →All eight planets and the five recognised dwarf planets are presented. The moons and small bodies are an educational selection, rather than an inventory of every discovered object.
Plan around the positions of the Moon and planets, or turn these distances into a walking trail.
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