Planets & Moons

Sun

The Sun is a glowing ball of gas at the centre of our solar system, holding over 99% of its mass.

💡 Did you know? Its light takes about eight minutes to reach Earth.

Mercury

Mercury is the smallest planet and the closest to the Sun, covered in craters.

💡 Did you know? A day on Mercury lasts longer than its year.

Venus

Venus is wrapped in a dense, toxic cloud cover and is the hottest planet.

💡 Did you know? As the ‘morning’ and ‘evening star’ it is often the brightest object in the sky.

Earth

Earth is the only known planet with life and liquid water.

💡 Did you know? The famous ‘Blue Marble’ photo shows it as a blue sphere.

Moon

The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite and drives the tides.

💡 Did you know? In 1969 humans first set foot on another world here.

Mars

The ‘Red Planet’ owes its colour to rusty iron dust.

💡 Did you know? It hosts the solar system's tallest volcano, Olympus Mons.

Jupiter

Jupiter is the largest planet, a gas giant with the famous ‘Great Red Spot’.

💡 Did you know? The red spot is a storm larger than the whole Earth.

Saturn

Saturn is the planet with the most spectacular ring system of ice and rock.

💡 Did you know? It is so light it would theoretically float on water.

Uranus

Uranus is a pale-blue ice giant that rotates tipped over on its side.

💡 Did you know? It was the first planet discovered with a telescope.

Neptune

Neptune is the outermost planet, deep blue and lashed by stormy winds.

💡 Did you know? It was first predicted by calculation, then found in the sky.

Pluto

Pluto was long counted as the ninth planet but has been a dwarf planet since 2006.

💡 Did you know? In 2015 the New Horizons probe revealed its heart-shaped icy plain.

Titan

Titan is Saturn's largest moon, wrapped in a thick, orange atmosphere.

💡 Did you know? It has lakes and rivers of liquid methane.