The Solar System

A giant plume of hot gas explodes from the Sun's surface.A middle-
aged star, planets large and small, moons of almost endless variety, and a whole lot of leftovers make up our own
little cosmic oasis of light and life. It's an oasis that we are still striving to understand -- and that humans may
someday explore in person.
In the winter of 1504, astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus watched as the planets Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn grouped
close together in the evening sky. As he tracked them from night to night, he was troubled, because the planets
bunched closest to each other about 10 days later than predicted by reference tables of planetary motions. More
Explorations in 2012



Inner Planets


Mercury

Venus

Earth

Mars

Outer Planets


Jupiter

Saturn

Uranus

Neptune

Minor Bodies


Pluto

Comets

Asteroids

Meteorites

Craters and Extinctions


Astro Guide

Exploring Our Own Back
Yard
Realm of the Giants Remnants from the
Beginning


Moons


Earths Moon

Mars' Moons

Jupiter's Moons

Saturn's Moons

Neptune's Triton