The Nine Planets
(We still love you, Pluto!)
An overview of the history, mythology and current scienti c knowledge of the planets,
Planets  Solar System 
T
he Nine Planets is an encyclopedic overview with facts and information about the history, mythology and
current scienti c knowledge of the planets, moons and other objects in our solar system and beyond.
About Nine Planets
The Nine Planets has been online
since 1994 and was one of the
rst multimedia websites that
appeared on the World Wide
Web.
Take an interactive tour of the
solar system, or browse the site
to nd fascinating information,
facts, and data about our planets,
the solar system, and beyond.
moons and other objects in our solar system.
Objects  Asteroid Types 
The 8 Planets in Our Solar System
Mercury
The smallest and fastest
planet, Mercury is the
closest planet to the Sun and
whips around it every 88
Earth days.
Mercury facts →
Earth
The place we call home,
Earth is the third rock from
the sun and the only planet
with known life on it – and
lots of it too!
Earth facts →
Jupiter
Jupiter is a massive planet,
twice the size of all other
planets combined and has a
centuries-old storm that is
bigger than Earth.
Jupiter facts →
Uranus
Uranus has a very unique
rotation–it spins on its side
at an almost 90-degree
angle, unlike other planets.
Uranus facts →
The Five Dwarf Planets
Ceres
Ceres is the largest object in
the asteroid belt, but was
reclassi ed a dwarf planet in
2006 – even though it’s 14
times smaller than Pluto.
Ceres facts →
Haumea
Haumea lives in the Kuiper
belt and is about the same
size as Pluto. It spins very
fast, which distorts its shape,
making it look like a football.
Haumea facts →
Eris
Eris is the same size as Pluto,
but three times further from
the Sun! It’s so far away, we
don’t know much about this
extremely cold and remote
dwarf planet.
Eris facts →
Other Objects in The Solar System
The Sun
The Sun is the heart of our
solar system and its gravity is
what keeps every planet and
particle in orbit. This yellow
dwarf star is just one of
billions like it across the
Milky Way galaxy.
Sun facts →
Comets
Comets are snowballs made
up of frozen gas, rock, and
dust that orbit the Sun. As
they get closer to the Sun,
they heat up and leave a trail
of glowing dust and gases.
Comet facts →
Asteroid Belt
Between the orbits of Mars
and Jupiter, the asteroid belt
contains an estimated 1.9
asteroids. The total mass of
all objects in the asteroid belt
is still less than that of
Earth’s Moon.
Asteroid belt facts →
Explore
Mercury
Venus
Earth
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
Uranus
Neptune
Pluto (the ninth planet)
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Stars  Questions Planets for Kids Buyer’s Guides 
Venus
Spinning in the opposite
direction to most planets,
Venus is the hottest planet,
and one of the brightest
objects in the sky.
Venus facts →
Mars
The red planet is dusty, cold
world with a thin
atmosphere and is home to
four NASA robots.
Mars facts →
Saturn
The most recognizable
planet with a system of icy
rings, Saturn is a very unique
and interesting planet.
Saturn facts →
Neptune
Neptune is now the most
distant planet and is a cold
and dark world nearly 3
billion miles from the Sun.
Neptune facts →
Pluto
Pluto will always be the ninth
planet to us! Smaller than
Earth’s moon, Pluto was a
planet up until 2006 and has
ve of its own moons!
Pluto facts →
Makemake
Also in the Kuiper belt,
Makemake is the second
brightest object in the belt,
behind Pluto. Makemake
(and Eris) are the reason
Pluto is no longer a planet.
Makemake facts →
The Moon
The only place beyond Earth
that humans have explored,
the Moon is the largest and
brightest object in our sky –
responsible for the tides and
keeping Earth stable on its
axis.
Moon facts →
Asteroids
Asteroids are small, rocky,
debris left over from the
formation of our solar
system around 4.6 billion
years ago. There are
currently over 822,000
known asteroids.
Asteroid facts →
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