Cosma / Communication / Knowledge / Realm / Physical / Universe / Solar System, Our Neighborhood
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Introduction1
NASAJPL Edu (YouTube Channel)
NASA JPL Edu (Official Website)
Dictionary
Solar System : the sun together with the group of celestial bodies that are held by its attraction and revolve around it; also : a similar system centered on another star — Merriam-Webster See also OneLook
Encyclopedia
Solar System is the gravitationally bound system comprising the Sun and the objects that orbit it, either directly or indirectly. Of those objects that orbit the Sun directly, the largest eight are the planets, with the remainder being significantly smaller objects, such as dwarf planets and small Solar System bodies. Of the objects that orbit the Sun indirectly, the moons, two are larger than the smallest planet, Mercury.
The Solar System formed 4.6 billion years ago from the gravitational collapse of a giant interstellar molecular cloud. The vast majority of the system’s mass is in the Sun, with most of the remaining mass contained in Jupiter. The four smaller inner planets, Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars, are terrestrial planets, being primarily composed of rock and metal. The four outer planets are giant planets, being substantially more massive than the terrestrials. The two largest, Jupiter and Saturn, are gas giants, being composed mainly of hydrogen and helium; the two outermost planets, Uranus and Neptune, are ice giants, being composed mostly of substances with relatively high melting points compared with hydrogen and helium, called volatiles, such as water, ammonia and methane. All planets have almost circular orbits that lie within a nearly flat disc called the ecliptic. — Wikipedia
Solar System (Encyclopædia Britannica)
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Exploration
Solar Extremes
This 360° image is one of a series of Toy Worlds that serve as a 3D interface to Cosma.
Click on objects to find out about them.
Use the menu to visit other Toy Worlds.
You can also explore this Toy World on Kuula.
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Kenneth C. Griffin Exploring The Planets Exhibit (National Air and Space Museum)
Kenneth C. Griffin Exploring The Planets Exhibit (Virtual Tour)
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360° Space Roller Coaster 1 (Bright Side VR 360 Videos, YouTube 360° Video)
360° Space Roller Coaster 2 (Bright Side VR 360 Videos, YouTube 360° Video)
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Adventures
Explore related posts on Cosma …
- A Golden Gift - If you’re looking for a perfect gift for your favorite geek, look no further. Now you can give them a copy of the Voyager Golden Record. Up until 2016, you couldn’t buy a copy, but then Ozma Records ran a brilliant Kickstarter campaign to issue a limited vinyl edition. Here’s a link to a video … Continue reading A Golden Gift
- Lunar Landings - Saturday, July 20th is the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing, and there’s a massive media blitz surrounding the occasion. Pretty much every major news outlet is covering it in some way, and it’s no surprise that NASA is leading the publicity frenzy. On Friday at 1 p.m. (EDT) NASA is broadcasting 50 … Continue reading Lunar Landings
- Moon’scapes - There’s no denying that it’s been a rough week for many Earthlings. On the other hand, it’s been a great week for anyone who spends their time more preoccupied with the Moon than with more earthly concerns. That’s because there’s a treasure trove of news about our lunar realm. For example, NASA’s Goddard Media Studios … Continue reading Moon’scapes
- Moon+H2O=Moonbase? - One of the big science stories in the news now is that Earth’s Moon has more water than scientists expected. Here is a link to just one of the hundreds of stories flooding news feeds. The Moon Has More Water Than Originally Thought (Scripps News, YouTube) This round of stories has been inspired by this … Continue reading Moon+H2O=Moonbase?
- Octopuses from Space! - Did you hear the one about the octopuses from space? It sounds like the title of a cheesy sci-fi movie, doesn’t it? But it isn’t, this time, or at least, yet. Instead, it’s actually an oddball theory that’s been put forth in a recently published “scientific” article that’s getting quite a lot of buzz in … Continue reading Octopuses from Space!
- Perspectives on Earth - Last week NASA released this fascinating video entitled Our Living Planet based upon 20 years of data from satellites that observe all plant life at the surface of the land and ocean. NASA Goddard (YouTube Channel) Goddard Space Flight Center (Official Website) You can find out more about the video from this article. The Changing … Continue reading Perspectives on Earth
- RIP Rossetta! - The “Little Mission that Could” has come to an end, but what a mission it was to watch! In honor of the success, here are some videos and articles about the many, many accomplishments. Euronews (YouTube Channel) Euronews (Official Website) NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (YouTube Channel) NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (Official Website) Rosetta Mission Ends … Continue reading RIP Rossetta!
- Space Cadet Academy - Confession — I’m a major space cadet! I mean this in an older, positive sense of the word, which is that I’m a “space enthusiast.” That’s why I really get into updating the pages on Cosma having to do with space. Things got a little out of hand this time, though. I began just like … Continue reading Space Cadet Academy
- Space Rocks! - NASA engineers had quite a New Years celebration in 2019 when New Horizons successfully executed a flyby of a tiny object named 2014 MU69 while moving at 32,000 miles per hour. The planetesimal 2014 MU69 is better known by it’s nickname Ultima Thule, and it’s located way out past Pluto in a region of the … Continue reading Space Rocks!
- Touch the Sun - Remember how Icarus wanted to touch the Sun, but met his demise instead? Well, scientists at NASA wanted to touch the Sun too, but unlike Icarus, they succeeded! Better yet, they are beginning to share what they learned by doing it! Before we get into all of that, let’s go back and start at the … Continue reading Touch the Sun
- Umbraphiles - umbraphile : One who loves eclipses, often travelling to see them. You’ve probably heard about the April 8th solar eclipse (Wikipedia), and if you live near the path of totality, then you’ve probably also seen news stories like this one. Party in the Path of Totality at These Solar Eclipse Getaways Across New England (Kristi … Continue reading Umbraphiles
- Umbraphiles Rejoice! - umbraphile : One who loves eclipses, often travelling to see them. You are probably hearing a lot about the August 12th solar eclipse. It’s path of totality will pass over the Arctic Ocean, Greenland, Iceland, Atlantic Ocean, Portugal, and northern Spain. The National Solar Observatory has created a neat eclipse map that shows the path. … Continue reading Umbraphiles Rejoice!
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Inspiration
Eyes on the Solar System provides realistic simulated views of spacecraft, planets and other features within the Solar System with position and orientation of spacecraft and planets represented in the software are based on real data from JPL. — Wikipedia
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (YouTube Channel)
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (Official Website)
Eyes on the Solar System (NASA’s JPL & Cal Tech)
Solar System Treks are online, browser-based portals that allow you to visualize, explore, and analyze the surfaces of other worlds using real data returned from a growing fleet of spacecraft. You can view the worlds through the eyes of many different instruments, pilot real-time 3D flyovers above mountains and into craters, and conduct measurements of surface features. — Solar System Treks (NASA)
Solar System Simulator is a graphical engine which will produce simulated views of any body in the solar system from any point in space. — NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Solar System Simulator (NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory)
Solar System (Astrum, YouTube Playlist)
Talks about the Solar System (TED: Ideas Worth Spreading)
Articles about the Solar System (Big Think)
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Innovation
Science
Solar System Exploration (NASA Science Website)
NASA Solar System (YouTube Channel)
Solar System Videos (ViewSpace, Space Telescope Science Institute)
Our Dynamic Solar System Videos (ViewSpace, Space Telescope Science Institute)
Solar System (Astrum, YouTube Playlist)
Our Solar System’s Moons (Astrum, YouTube Playlist)
Solar System (SciShow Space, YouTube Playlists)
Our Solar System (National Geographic)
Our Solar System (Lunar & Planetary Institute)
Evolution of our Solar System (Lunar & Planetary Institute)
Solar System (Eric Weisstein’s World of Astronomy, Wolfram Research)
Solar System Formation (Eric Weisstein’s World of Astronomy, Wolfram Research)
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Preservation
History
History of Astronomy: Solar System (Astronomiae Historia: History of Astronomy)
Best of: Space Exploration (The History Guy, YouTube Video)
Earth, Planetary, and Solar Science History (NASA’s History Office)
Museum
Solar System (National Air and Space Museum)
Library
DDC: 523.2 Solar System (Library Thing)
Subject: Solar System (Library Thing)
Subject: Solar System (Open Library)
LCC: QB 500.5 Solar System (UPenn Online Books)
LCC: QB 500.5 Solar System (Library of Congress)
Subject: Solar System (Library of Congress)
Subject: Solar System (WorldCat)
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Participation
Education
NASAeClips (YouTube Channel)
NASAeClips (Official Website)
NASA Space Place (YouTube Channel)
NASA Space Place (Official Website)
Solar System (NASA Space Place, Website)
The Solar System and Beyond: Kids Edition (NASA Video, YouTube Playlist)
Solar System – Level 1 (StarChild, Goddard Space Flight Center, NASA)
Solar System – Level 2 (StarChild, Goddard Space Flight Center, NASA)
Solar System (United States Geological Survey)
Solar System Learning Resources (National Air and Space Museum)
Solar System I (Cosmos4Kids)
Solar System II (Cosmos4Kids)
Solar System (Space Scoop)
Planets (Space Scoop)
Introduction to the Solar System (CrashCourse Astronomy, YouTube Video)
Solar System (Astronomy Center, ComPADRE)
MERLOT: Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching
OER Commons: Open Educational Resources
Community
Organization
The Planetary Society
Lunar & Planetary Institute
News
Solar System (Nova Research Highlights, American Astronomical Society)
Solar System (Sky & Telescope)
Solar System (Astronomy Magazine)
Solar System (JSTOR)
Solar System (Science Daily)
Solar System (Phys.org)
Recent News from Phys.org …
- Scientists to probe the source behind a massive...on September 15, 2026 at 3:00 am
Eighty years ago, a massive tsunami devastated parts of Hawaii, Alaska, Washington and Oregon following an earthquake off the coast of Alaska. A Michigan State University team is launching a project to study the underwater fault system where it originated—and whether it still poses a risk today.
- Australia must double down to meet our climate...on September 15, 2026 at 2:20 am
Within the next five years, global warming is set to breach the 1.5°C threshold at the heart of the 2015 Paris Agreement. This will have dire consequences, from rapidly melting ice sheets to ghostly white coral reefs.
- A new design for a plasma engine fuels on only...on September 15, 2026 at 12:40 am
Choosing an orbit for a satellite always comes with trade-offs. Very low Earth orbit (VLEO), between 100–450 km (62–280 miles), has distinct advantages. Remote-sensing cameras can take better pictures, communications and radar require less power, and atmospheric drag automatically cleans up dead satellites.
- Series of reactions reveals how complex carbon...on September 14, 2026 at 6:00 pm
Before there was Earth, there was chemistry. In the unimaginable cold, dark clouds where stars and planets are born, carbon molecules assemble into more complex forms—starting a chemical journey that could eventually deliver some of life's basic ingredients to young planets. There's only one problem: These molecules need heat to form. At least that's what scientists have long believed. But new research from FIU chemist Alexander Mebel reveals such chemistry can actually happen at temperatures […]
- JWST ruled out finding tiny moons around an...on September 13, 2026 at 10:30 pm
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has opened many wonders of the cosmos to scientists since it began science operations a few years ago. But one thing it hasn't done is find an "exomoon." These still-theoretical moons orbit exoplanets in other star systems, and JWST was supposed to find a plethora of them.
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Related
Here are links to pages about closely related subjects.
“Fundamentals”
Law (Constant) Relativity
Force Gravity, Electromagnetism (Light, Color)
Matter (Microscope) Molecule, Atom (Periodic Table), Particle
“Space”
Universe (Astronomical Instrument)
Galaxy Milky Way, Andromeda
Planetary System Star, Brown Dwarf, Planet, Moon
Our Neighborhood
Solar System Sun
Terrestrial Planet Mercury, Venus, Earth (Moon), Mars
Asteroid Belt Ceres, Vesta
Jovian Planet Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
Trans-Neptunian Object
Kuiper Belt Pluto, Haumea, Makemake
Scattered Disc Eris, Sedna, Planet X
Oort Cloud Etc. Scholz’s Star
Small Body Comet, Centaur, Asteroid
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Notes
1. The resources on this page are are organized by a classification scheme developed exclusively for Cosma.





