The Solar System

Our Space Neighborhood

We live in a space neighborhood called the Solar System. In the center is the Sun. Eight planets travel around the Sun in continuous circular paths called orbits. They never stop moving.

The Sun

The Sun is a star — a giant ball of burning gas. When you stand outside and feel warmth on your face, you feel the energy of the Sun traveling across space.

Size analogy: If the Sun were a standard basketball in your hands, our entire planet Earth would be only the size of a tiny grain of sand, sitting 26 meters away.

The Inner Planets — Rocky Ground

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars. These are made of hard rock and metal. If you touched their surface, it would feel solid — like touching a dry brick or a dusty road.

Mercury & Venus sit very close to the Sun — dangerously hot, like the inside of a baking oven. Mars is completely covered in red dust and is freezing cold.

The Outer Planets — Swirling Gas Giants

Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune. These are massive but have no solid surface. You cannot walk on them. They are made entirely of thick, fast-moving gases and freezing liquids.

If you stood inside one, it would feel like being in a heavy, freezing windstorm — with no ground beneath your feet.