Science
The solar system
The eight planets in order from the Sun.
Our solar system has 8 planets that travel around the Sun. To remember the order, try: My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Noodles (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune).
Meet the planets
Tap a planet to take a closer look.
Planet 3 from the Sun · Rocky
Earth
The only planet known to have life.
- Width
- 12,756 km
- From the Sun
- 150 million km
- One year
- 365 days
Sizes compared
The planets are drawn to scale with each other. The distances between them are not.
The planets in order
| Planet | Type | Width (km) | From the Sun | One year lasts | Good to know |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Mercury | Rocky | 4,879 | 58 million km | 88 days | The smallest planet and the closest to the Sun. |
| 2. Venus | Rocky | 12,104 | 108 million km | 225 days | The hottest planet, because its thick clouds trap heat. |
| 3. Earth | Rocky | 12,756 | 150 million km | 365 days | The only planet known to have life. |
| 4. Mars | Rocky | 6,792 | 228 million km | 687 days | Called the red planet because its soil contains rust. |
| 5. Jupiter | Gas giant | 142,984 | 778 million km | 12 Earth years | The biggest planet. More than 1,000 Earths could fit inside it. |
| 6. Saturn | Gas giant | 120,536 | 1.4 billion km | 29 Earth years | Famous for its bright rings, made of ice and rock. |
| 7. Uranus | Ice giant | 51,118 | 2.9 billion km | 84 Earth years | Spins on its side, as if it was knocked over. |
| 8. Neptune | Ice giant | 49,528 | 4.5 billion km | 165 Earth years | The farthest planet, with the fastest winds in the solar system. |
Distances are averages. A year is how long a planet takes to go once around the Sun. Pluto was called a planet until 2006 and is now called a dwarf planet.