Uranus, named after the the father of the Roman god Saturn, is the seventh planet in the Solar System and third of the gas giants. It is the third largest planet by diameter, yet fourth most massive. It’s not visible to the naked eye, and became the first planet discovered with the use of a … Read more
Neptune is the eighth planet from the Sun making it the most distant in the solar system. This gas giant planet may have formed much closer to the Sun in early solar system history before migrating to its present position. Due to its blue coloration, Neptune was named after the Roman god of the Sea. … Read more
Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun and due to its proximity it is not easily seen except during twilight. Mercury is only the second hottest planet.Despite being further from the Sun, Venus experiences higher temperatures. Being so close to the Sun, the daytime temperature on Mercury is scorching – reaching over 400 °C … Read more
Venus is the second planet from the Sun and is the second brightest object in the night sky after the Moon. Venus is also the closest planet to Earth. Named after the Roman goddess of love and beauty, Venus is the second largest terrestrial planet and is sometimes referred to as the Earth’s sister planet … Read more
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun. The planet is named after Mars, the Roman god of war. It was known to the ancient Greeks as Ares, their god of war. This is thought to be because of the blood-red color of the planet which was also used by other ancient cultures. Chinese astronomers … Read more
Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the most distant that can be seen with the naked eye. Many astronomers consider Saturn the most beautiful planet in the solar system because of its stunning rings. In fact, Saturn’s nickname is “the jewel of the solar system“. Only Jupiter has more moons (63) than … Read more
Earth is the third planet from the Sun. The Earth was formed approximately 4.54 billion years ago and is the only known planet to support life. Earth isn’t round. Centrifugal force pushes outwards at Earth’s equator giving it a slight waistline. It takes 8 minutes and 20 seconds for light to travel from the sun … Read more