Eight planets
There are eight planets that orbit around the Sun. In order, going from the closest planet to the
Sun, to the one that is farthest away, they are: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn,
Uranus and Neptune.
How the planets orbit the sun
Planets orbit the sun in oval-shaped paths called ellipses, with the sun slightly off-center of each
ellipse. NASA has a fleet of spacecraft observing the sun to learn more about its composition, and to
make better predictions about solar activity and its effect on Earth.
What holds the
sun in
place(Gravity)
The Sun is a yellow dwarf star, a
hot ball of glowing gases at the
heart of our solar system. Its
gravity holds the solar system
together, keeping everything –
from the biggest planets to the
smallest particles of debris – in
its orbit
Why is Pluto no longer a planet
The International Astronomical
Union (IAU) downgraded the
status of Pluto to that of a dwarf
planet because it did not meet the
three criteria the IAU uses to
define a full-sized planet. Essentially
Pluto meets all the criteria except
one—it “has not cleared its
neighboring region of other
objects.”
Planets and their own moons
*Mercury and Venus have no moons.
*Earth has 1 moon.
*Mars has 2 moons.
*Jupiter has 79 moons.
* Saturn has 82 moons.
*Uranus has 27 moons.
*Neptune has 14 moons.