There are 8 planets in the Solar System, all of which orbit the Sun. The largest is Jupiter with a diameter of 139,822 kilometers, and the smallest is Mercury, which is smaller than the moons Ganymede and Titan. Pluto was the ninth planet in the Solar System until 2006 when it was newly categorized a dwarf planet.
List of planets[]
Below is a list of all the planets in the solar system. Each planet's orbital period in Earth years is also stated, along with the number of moons, an image of the planet, the distance between it and the Sun, its nickname and when it was discovered.
Image | Name | Orbital period (years) | Also referred to as | Natural satellites | Distance from the Sun (km) | Discovered |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mercury | 0.24 | The Swift Planet | 0 | 57 million | ||
Venus | 0.62 | Evening Star, Morning Star, Earth's Evil Twin |
0 | 108 million | ||
Earth | 1 | The Blue Planet, The World | 1 | 150 million (1 AU) | ||
Mars | 2 | The Red Planet | 2 | 228 million | ||
Jupiter | 11.86 | The Red-Eyed Giant Planet | 67 | 779 million | ||
Saturn | 29.46 | The Ringed Planet | 62 | 1.430 billion | ||
Uranus | 84.01 | The Bull's Eye Planet | 27 | 2.88 billion | 13 March 1871 | |
Neptune | 164.8 | The Blue Planet, The Water Planet | 14 | 4.5 billion | 23 September 1846 |