The solar system consists of the sun and everything that orbits the sun. This includes the eight planets and
their moons, the dwarf planets, asteroids, comets and other small objects.
All the planets and dwarf planets, the rocky asteroids, and the icy bodies in the Kuiper belt move around
the
Sun in elliptical orbits in the same direction that the Sun rotates. This motion is termed prograde, or
direct
motion.
Planets in the Solar System:
| No. |
Planet Name |
Distance from Sun (in million km) |
| 1 |
Mercury |
57.91 m km |
| 2 |
Venus |
108.2 m km |
| 3 |
Earth |
149.6 m km |
| 4 |
Mars |
227.9 m km |
| 5 |
Jupiter |
778.5 m km |
| 6 |
Saturn |
1.434 b km |
| 7 |
Uranus |
2.871 b km |
| 8 |
Neptune |
4.495 billion km |
Dwarf planets are celestial bodies that orbit the Sun and are similar to regular planets but do not meet all
the criteria set by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) for full-fledged planets.
Specifically, they
have not cleared their neighboring region of other objects. As of now, there are five officially recognized
dwarf planets in our solar system:
- Pluto:
- Once considered the ninth planet, Pluto was reclassified as a dwarf planet in 2006.
- Located in the Kuiper Belt, a region of the solar system beyond Neptune filled with icy bodies
and dwarf planets.
- Eris:
- Discovered in 2005, Eris is located in the scattered disc, a distant area of the solar system.
- Eris is slightly smaller than Pluto but more massive.
- Haumea:
- Haumea has an elongated shape due to its rapid rotation.
- Located in the Kuiper Belt, it has two known moons, Hiʻiaka and Namaka.
- Makemake:
- Also located in the Kuiper Belt, Makemake was discovered in 2005.
- It is one of the largest known dwarf planets in the Kuiper Belt.
- Ceres:
- Ceres is the only dwarf planet located in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
- It was the first dwarf planet to be visited by a spacecraft, NASA's Dawn mission.
