Solar system planets classified

The eight planets in our solar system are divided into two groups: small rocky planets such as Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars, and large gaseous giants like Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.

Visibility of planets from Earth

From Earth, six of the planets can be seen with the naked eye, and all eight can be viewed using binoculars or a telescope.

Discovery of exoplanets

Astronomers have identified hundreds of planets outside our solar system, known as exoplanets, and they continue to find new ones regularly. Some of these may be capable of supporting extraterrestrial life.

History of constellations and planets

Long before the Internet or video games like Super Mario Kart, people observed the night sky and connected stars to form constellations. However, they noticed that some stars moved differently, leading the ancient Greeks to call them "planets," meaning "wanderers."

Pluto's status change

In 1930, Pluto was considered the ninth planet. However, the definition of a planet was unclear until 2006, when scientists established three criteria for a celestial body to be classified as a planet.

Dwarf planet classification

Pluto did not meet all the criteria, so it was reclassified as a "dwarf planet," a category for celestial objects in the solar system that are not considered full planets.