The Sun is the most important celestial body in our solar system, providing the heat and light necessary for life on Earth. It is a vast sphere of hot plasma, undergoing nuclear fusion at its core to generate energy. This article delves into its size, classification, the phenomenon of sunspots, and safe ways to observe…
The story of the Moon stretches back to the formation of Earth itself. Many theories have been proposed. Some have stood the test of time while others have fallen by the wayside. Here we explore five of the most recent theories. Moon’s Origin. Five theories have been put forward as to formation of the Moon….
The eight planets of the solar system each one has a very different history and story to tell. Mercury Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun and orbits in approximately 88 Earth days. Its diameter is 4,880km (3,030 miles). Mercury is stuck in a 3 to 2 rotation period, meaning that relative to the…
I remember the first time I peered through a telescope, marveling at the distant specks of light scattered across the night sky. Among those are the rocky remnants from the dawn of our solar system, collectively known as the asteroid belt. This vast expanse lies between Mars and Jupiter, home to millions of asteroids orbiting…
The outer reaches of our solar system are an utterly fascinating place. The region beyond Neptune is an area stretching far beyond the orbit of Neptune and have some of the most enigmatic and least understood objects in our Solar System. Here, the Kuiper Belt and the Oort Cloud hint at the primordial matter that…
Beyond the Asteroid Belt lies the realm of the giant planets. These behemoths of the outer Solar System are chiefly made up of gas. Percentage of these gases vary from planet to planet and mostly contain large amounts of hydrogen and helium. There are two classes of the Giant Planets, the Gas Giants and the…
Cold and Eccentric: A Dive into Uranus and Neptune Uranus Uranus from Voyager 2 Moving on out our next visit is to Uranus the seventh planet from the Sun. Uranus is the third largest planet in the Solar System after Jupiter and Saturn. But unlike Jupiter and Saturn, which are gas giants, Uranus is described…
The Oort Cloud: A Spherical Shell of Mysteries Imagine a vast, spherical shell encasing our solar system’s periphery, home to icy objects and potential comets – that’s the Oort Cloud. Unlike the flattened disk of the Kuiper Belt, which you can read about in my article ‘Where is the Kuiper Belt?’, the Oort Cloud forms…
