Explore Planets
![](/images/icons/systemplanet_whatis.jpg)
It may surprise you, but astronomers don't really have a good definition of a "planet". Because ...
Read more
![](/images/icons/systemplanet_mercury.jpg)
Mercury, the planet nearest the Sun, is also the smallest planet in the Solar System. Only ...
Read more
![](/images/icons/systemplanet_venus.jpg)
Fair but inhospitable Venus, a "Sister" planet to the Earth that is very different from our ...
Read more
![](/images/icons/systemplanet_earth.jpg)
Earth, our home planet, is a beautiful blue and white ball when seen from space. ...
Read more
![](/images/icons/systemplanet_mars.jpg)
Mars, Earth's outer neighbor, is the fourth planet from the Sun. Mars' bright appearance and ...
Read more
![](/images/icons/systemplanet_jupiter.jpg)
Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system. When approached from afar, its fantastic ...
Read more
![](/images/icons/systemplanet_saturn.jpg)
Saturn, the sixth planet from the Sun, has the most spectacular set of rings in the solar system. ...
Read more
![](/images/icons/systemplanet_uranus.jpg)
Uranus, the seventh planet from the Sun, has its spin axis almost in the plane of its orbit ...
Read more
![](/images/icons/systemplanet_neptune.jpg)
Neptune, the eighth and furthest planet from the Sun, is a very cold place. Its bluish color ...
Read more
![](/images/icons/systemplanet_pluto.jpg)
In 2006 the International Astronomical Union (IAU) approved a new classification scheme for ...
Read more
Did you know?
Did you know that there is a
strange hexagon in the atmosphere at the northern pole of Saturn?
Do you know who discovered Uranus?
Earth and Space Science Concept of the Day
Do you know what this word or phrase means?
Sand boilxSand boil : A sand boil is sand and water that come out onto the ground surface during an earthquake as a result of liquefaction at shallow depth.
Click on the word to find out!
Research Highlights
Geologists have found evidence that sea ice extended to the equator 716.5 million years ago, bringing new precision to a "snowball Earth" event long suspected to have taken place around that time. Funded...
Read more![](/olpa/images/glaciation1_sm.jpg)