close
The Wayback Machine - https://web.archive.org/web/20220906221510/https://www.space.com/topics/solar-system

Solar System

Our solar system is filled with planets, asteroids, comets, the sun and more, making it a wealth of discoveries waiting to be found. See the latest discoveries from across our solar system here. 

Explore the planets in our solar system: Earth, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

Related topics: asteroids, Pluto, the moon, comets

Latest Updates

spacecraft against black background

After 45 years, the 5-billion-year legacy of the Voyager 2 interstellar probe is just beginning

By Alice Gorman published

The iconic Voyager spacecraft seen through the eyes of an archaeologist.

An illustration of diamond rain inside an ice giant planet.

Diamond rains could fall through the interior of ice giant planets

By Robert Lea published

The interiors of the solar system's ice giants, Neptune and Uranus, could experience an exotic form of precipitation, and these 'diamond rains' could be more common than previously thought.

photo of rocket lifting off

NASA's iconic Voyager 1 marks 45 years in space

By Meghan Bartels published

NASA's venerable Voyager 1 spacecraft has reached a key milestone.

A collage of Earth and the Milky Way.

Could Earth ever leave our solar system?

By Joe Phelan published

Here's how the Earth could theoretically leave the solar system.

artwork of voyager 1 spacecraft in black space background

NASA solves Voyager 1 data glitch mystery, but finds another

By Tariq Malik published

Voyager 1 is once again beaming back clear telemetry data on its status beyond our solar system, solving one mystery and leading to another.

artist's depiction

Voyager 1 marks 10 years in interstellar space

By Jamie Carter published

The spacecraft has since revealed a bizarre heliopause and a complex interstellar medium that's influenced by our sun.

An illustration of red giant stars.

Scientists get gruesome look at how stars like our sun eat their own planets

By Tereza Pultarova published

A new study explores what happens when blown-up dying red giant stars engulf planets in their vicinity.

Artist's illustration of Voyager 1 probe looking back at the solar system from a great distance.

Voyager 1: Facts about Earth's farthest spacecraft

By Elizabeth Howell published

Reference Voyager 1 is the first spacecraft to travel beyond the solar system and enter interstellar space. The probe is still exploring the cosmos to this day.

The laws of physics define the orbits of planets.

What makes Newton's laws work? Here's the simple trick.

By Paul Sutter published

Lagrange found that the difference between an object's kinetic energy and potential energy unlocked something deeply profound about the universe.

A composite image of Jupiter taken by Webb's NIRCam, showing the planet's rings and two of its moons, Amalthea and Adrastea. The blue glow around Jupiter's poles is the aurora.

Jupiter's auroras look radiant in new James Webb Space Telescope images

By Stefanie Waldek published

Impressive infrared images of Jupiter's auroras were processed by citizen scientist Judy Schmidt.

jupiter, saturn, uranus, neptune and earth

Voyager turns 45: What the iconic mission taught us and what's next

By Jamie Carter published

The twin probes, launched in 1977, made groundbreaking discoveries about the solar system and inspired future space missions.

An artist's depiction of one of the twin Voyager spacecraft exploring interstellar space.

Celebrate NASA's Voyager missions at 45 with this free webcast tonight

By Tariq Malik published

The Voyager missions are icons of cosmic exploration, and you can celebrate their 45th anniversary with a free webcast tonight (Aug. 18).

A close-up of a portion of Saturn's ring system showing distinct bands of blue, orange, yellow, and white.

Celebrate 45 years of Voyager with these amazing images of our solar system (gallery)

By Daisy Dobrijevic published

Reference NASA's twin probes, Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 have been exploring the cosmos for 45 years. Here, we take a look at some of their best images.

Voyager spacecraft against a backdrop of stars as it travels through space.

Voyager 2: An iconic spacecraft that's still exploring 45 years on

By Elizabeth Howell published

Reference Voyager 2 was the first of twin probes sent to explore our solar system. After reaching interstellar space in 2014 the probe continues to explore the cosmos.

The asteroid Ryugu, as seen by Japan's Hayabusa2 spacecraft on June 30, 2018.

Asteroid Ryugu contains dust older than the solar system

By Tereza Pultarova published

Ancient grains of dust that are older than the solar system itself have been found in samples from asteroid Ryugu brought to Earth by the Japanese Hayabusa2 spacecraft nearly two years ago.

The day side of Venus covered in clouds as seen by Akatsuki

A mystery of sulfur clouds of Venus may be solved by new computer model

By Andrew Jones published

Scientists using new computational methods have come up with a new insight into the potential workings of the complex atmosphere of Venus.

dwarf planet ceres with crater in center

Radioactive heat in Ceres drove dwarf planet's fractured geology

By Charles Q. Choi published

A new model exploring the dwarf planet Ceres suggests radioactivity deep in the small world may have created criss-crossed geology at its surface.

Artist's rendering

NASA's twin Voyager probes are nearly 45 — and facing some hard decisions

By Stefanie Waldek published

Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 continue their slow journeys deep into interstellar space.

The solar system, not to scale.

The inner solar system spins much more slowly than it should. Now, scientists may know why.

By Samantha Mathewson published

The inner solar system spins much more slowly than modern physics would expect, and a new study may help to explain why.

a spacecraft at an asteroid

NASA commissions independent review of delayed Psyche mission to metal asteroid

By Elizabeth Howell published

NASA's Psyche asteroid mission is moving into a review after software testing issues forced an extended launch delay to at least July 2023. Its future remains uncertain.