In Depth | Our Solar System - NASA Solar System Exploration
The planetary system we call home is located in an outer spiral arm of the Milky Way galaxy. Our solar system consists of our star, the Sun, and everything bound to it by gravity – the planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune; dwarf planets such as Pluto; dozens of moons; and millions of asteroids, comets, and ...
In Depth | Sun – NASA Solar System Exploration
The Sun orbits the center of the Milky Way, bringing with it the planets, asteroids, comets, and other objects in our solar system. Our solar system is moving with an average velocity of 450,000 miles per hour (720,000 kilometers per hour).
Search Results – NASA Solar System Exploration
NASA’s real-time science encyclopedia of deep space exploration. Our scientists and far-ranging robots explore the wild frontiers of our solar system.
Search Results - NASA Solar System Exploration
NASA’s real-time science encyclopedia of deep space exploration. Our scientists and far-ranging robots explore the wild frontiers of our solar system.
least twice as much mass in the Milky Way galactic disk as can be accounted for by adding up the mass of all stars and interstellar clouds. While the solar system does not have any detectable evidence for dark matter, our galaxy is composed of perhaps 90% dark matter.
Why the Moon is important for Solar System Science
Jan 9, 2025 · This paper outlines the importance of the Moon for Solar System science and in its own right as a critical target for scientific investigation during the next decade of exploration.
Stardust: Returning Comet Samples to Earth - NASA Solar System …
Even after the Sun has burned itself out, billions of years from now, vast numbers of our ejected comets will still be wandering our Milky Way Galaxy. Even when all of the stars of the Milky Way have finally burned out, these bodies will still be there wandering the darkness of space.
What Scientists Found After Sifting Through Dust in the Solar System
Mar 12, 2019 · Solar scientists like Howard — who study solar activity for purposes such as forecasting imminent space weather, including giant explosions of solar material that the Sun can sometimes send our way — have spent years developing techniques to remove the …
Cassini - The Grand Finale – NASA Solar System Exploration
Jan 9, 2025 · The vertical structures and the shadows they cast also revealed wavy patterns in the parts of the rings that resemble a miniature Milky Way, giving scientists insight into the way galaxies form. 7. Some of Cassini’s best discoveries were serendipitous.
M5 Orbits the Milky Way questioned whether our galaxy was the universe, or just an undistinguished part of a larger system. In many ways, this debate has been going on for centuries. Is the Earth the only large object in the universe? Is the solar system the largest part of the cosmos? Are the nearby stars the largest part of the universe?