Earth
Rocky planet
Our home: the only planet where we know life exists.
Earth is the third planet from the Sun.
Did you know? About 71% of Earth’s surface is covered with water.
Look at, spin and compare the eight worlds that travel around the Sun.
The eight planets travel around the Sun. The four closest planets are mostly rocky. The four farthest ones are giant worlds made mainly of gas or ice.
Imagine a huge race track: every planet travels in its own lane around the Sun.
Our Solar System has eight planets.
A planet follows a regular path around the Sun.
Earth is the only planet where we know life exists.
Planets are not lined up perfectly and their paths are slightly oval. The farther a planet is from the Sun, the longer it takes to travel around it.
Choose two planets. Compare their size, temperature and number of moons.
Answer two questions about the lesson to stamp your passport.
Question 1 of 2
You can spin the globe, open one idea at a time and finish with a mini challenge.
Rocky planet
Our home: the only planet where we know life exists.
Earth is the third planet from the Sun.
Did you know? About 71% of Earth’s surface is covered with water.
Earth is where we start. Choose another planet to work out the trip from home.
Want to compare more? Choose a planet below to see its data and its model in detail.
Our home! The only planet where we know life exists. 71% of its surface is water.
Did you know? Earth is the only planet not named after a Roman or Greek god.
Our Solar System has 8 planets. The first 4 are rocky planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars). The next 4 are gas or ice giants (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune). The 3D models use maps made from NASA images.
Each circle matches the real radius: Jupiter could hold 1,300 Earths!
Click a planet to explore it · ×1.0 = Earth (radius 6,371 km)
| Planet | Type | Radius (km) | Gravity | Temp (K) | Density | Dist. | Moons | Orbit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ☿ Mercury | Rocky | 2,439.7 | 3.7 | 440 | 5.43 | 57.9 M km | 0 | 88 d |
| ♀ Venus | Rocky | 6,051.8 | 8.87 | 737 | 5.24 | 108.2 M km | 0 | 225 d |
| 🌍 Earth | Rocky | 6,371 | 9.81 | 288 | 5.51 | 149.6 M km | 1 | 365 d |
| ♂ Mars | Rocky | 3,389.5 | 3.72 | 210 | 3.93 | 227.9 M km | 2 | 687 d |
| ♃ Jupiter | Gas giant | 69,911 | 24.79 | 165 | 1.33 | 778.5 M km | 101 | 4,333 d |
| ♄ Saturn | Gas giant | 58,232 | 10.44 | 134 | 0.69 | 1434 M km | 274 | 10,759 d |
| ♅ Uranus | Ice giant | 25,362 | 8.69 | 76 | 1.27 | 2871 M km | 28 | 30,687 d |
| ♆ Neptune | Ice giant | 24,622 | 11.15 | 72 | 1.64 | 4495 M km | 16 | 60,190 d |