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
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
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 | Asteroids – NASA Solar System Exploration In Depth Asteroids, sometimes called minor planets, are rocky remnants left over from the early formation of our solar system about 4 6 billion years ago The current known asteroid count is: Most of this ancient space rubble can be found orbiting our Sun between Mars and Jupiter within the main asteroid belt
In Depth | Kuiper Belt – NASA Solar System Exploration The amount of material in the Kuiper Belt today might be just a small fraction of what was originally there According to one well-supported theory, the shifting orbits of the four giant planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune) could have caused most of the original material -- likely 7 to 10 times the mass of Earth – to be lost
What Are Raw Images? - NASA Solar System Exploration Other NASA raw image galleries Some raw images from NASA missions are posted here Others are posted on mission websites, such as the Mars rovers Curiosity and Perseverance In time, the agency may combine more mission raw images in a central place like this page
In Depth | Earths Moon – NASA Solar System Exploration The brightest and largest object in our night sky, the Moon makes Earth a more livable planet by moderating our home planet's wobble on its axis, leading to a relatively stable climate It also causes tides, creating a rhythm that has guided humans for thousands of years The Moon was likely formed after a Mars-sized body collided with Earth several billion years ago Earth's Moon is the only
In Depth | Ganymede – NASA Solar System Exploration The discovery eventually led to the understanding that planets in our solar system orbit the Sun, instead of our solar system revolving around Earth (Jupiter now has 53 named moons and 26 provisional moons awaiting confirmation of discovery)