The Solar System

In the Solar System Channel, you can explore the planets and celestial objects around our own sun. Learn about topics such as Mars, Jupiter and the Moon.

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The European Space Agency's Gaia satellite observatory has created a 3-D model of the Milky Way - and beyond! - that charts more than a billion stars.

By Patrick J. Kiger

Say hello to the newly discovered TRAPPIST-1 system, which is just 39 light-years away and filled with seven Earth-like planets.

By Jonathan Strickland

The rings of Saturn, Uranus and Neptune may be remnants of smaller planets destroyed long ago by the gas giants' powerful gravity.

By Patrick J. Kiger

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And solving that issue could go a long way toward making our planetary neighbor habitable.

By Jonathan Strickland

Jupiter has been notoriously bad about revealing any water deep in its thick atmosphere. That's changing though.

By Ian O'Neill, Ph.D.

The annual Leonid meteor shower is back, and peaks in the late-night hours of November 17. It's made up of tiny bits of debris from the comet Tempel-Tuttle. Here's how to see it.

By Patrick J. Kiger

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The Mars solar conjunction occurs every two years and forces NASA to stop communicating with assets on the Red Planet. So what's the deal?

By Sharise Cunningham

Early dark energy, a form of dark energy that may have existed a few hundred thousand years after the big bang, could help clarify the universe's rate of expansion. But its existence hasn't been proven.

By Patrick J. Kiger

The four Jovian planets are officially designated as gas (and/or ice) giants. Which planets are they and what makes them so unique?

By HowStuffWorks.com Contributors

Terrestrial planets include the four closest to our sun, including Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. What else makes these celestial bodies terrestrial planets?

By Mitch Ryan

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Move over Saturn. There are other planets in the solar system surrounded by ring systems.

By Mitch Ryan