Stemming from the Greek word for "wanderers," planets have long captured humanity's attention as they moved across the sky against a backdrop of fixed stars. Planets are distinct from stars in that they have no internal source of radiation and typically orbit stars. While our solar system has eight planets, astronomers continue to discover more throughout the universe as technology advances. Find out more about your favorite or least familiar planet with our collection of the internet's best resources on planets.
Hours of research by our editors, distilled into minutes of clarity.
Stellarium Web is a planetarium running in your web browser. It shows a realistic star map, just like what you see with the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope. Using its interface, you can click on object's visible at your location on the Earth...
Astronomers going back to Hipparchus in the 2nd century BCE have noticed our planet has a distinct wobble. More recently, scientists have observed that the Earth is 26 miles wider at the equator than from pole to pole. The wobble results from our...
The second largest planet in our solar system, adorned with thousands of beautiful ringlets, Saturn is unique among the planets.
Astrophotographers specialize in collecting as much light from celestial objects as possible while minimizing the movement of the object they're capturing. It's a unique skillset—requiring unique tools—but the results are often universally...
Four and a half billion years ago the Earth formed from dust in space to become a molten ball of rock orbiting the sun. Travel back in time to investigate how the Earth was made.
Not all planets are created equal. Those capable of sustaining life as we known it must meet strict criteria, the most important of which is being at the right distance from their host star to have liquid water on the surface.
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From roughly 60 miles above the Earth's surface to farther than light has traveled during the entire age of the universe, space has captured human imagination for millennia. Explore the final frontier with the best resources curated from across the internet.