The planets
Click a planet to open its card. Five of them — Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn — are visible without any optical aid.
Mercury
The smallest planet and the closest to the Sun. It never strays far from the Sun in our sky, so look for it low on the horizon shortly after sunset or before sunrise.
| Distance from the Sun | about 58 million km |
| Year | 88 Earth days |
| Diameter | about 4,880 km |
| Visible to the naked eye | yes, briefly at twilight |
Venus
The brightest object in the night sky after the Moon, often called the morning or evening star. Thick clouds of carbon dioxide make its surface the hottest in the Solar System.
| Distance from the Sun | about 108 million km |
| Year | 225 Earth days |
| Diameter | about 12,100 km |
| Visible to the naked eye | yes, very bright |
Earth
Our home and the only place known to support life. Its single large Moon keeps the tilt of the planet relatively stable, which gives us steady seasons.
| Distance from the Sun | about 150 million km |
| Year | 365.25 days |
| Diameter | about 12,742 km |
Mars
The red planet gets its colour from iron oxide dust. Every two years or so it comes close to Earth and shines as a bright orange point.
| Distance from the Sun | about 228 million km |
| Year | 687 Earth days |
| Diameter | about 6,780 km |
| Visible to the naked eye | yes, orange-red |
Jupiter
The largest planet — more than twice as massive as all the other planets combined. Even simple binoculars show its four largest moons as tiny dots lined up beside it.
| Distance from the Sun | about 778 million km |
| Year | about 12 Earth years |
| Diameter | about 139,800 km |
| Visible to the naked eye | yes, very bright |
Saturn
Famous for its rings, made of countless pieces of ice and rock. The rings are visible in a small telescope at around 25× magnification.
| Distance from the Sun | about 1.4 billion km |
| Year | about 29 Earth years |
| Diameter | about 116,500 km |
| Visible to the naked eye | yes, steady yellowish light |
Uranus
An ice giant that rotates on its side, probably because of a giant collision long ago. It is right at the edge of naked-eye visibility under very dark skies.
| Distance from the Sun | about 2.9 billion km |
| Year | about 84 Earth years |
| Diameter | about 50,700 km |
Neptune
The most distant planet, with the fastest winds measured in the Solar System. It was found in 1846 thanks to mathematical predictions before anyone saw it.
| Distance from the Sun | about 4.5 billion km |
| Year | about 165 Earth years |
| Diameter | about 49,200 km |