Natural Satellites In The Solar System

There are 179 known natural satellites in the solar system each grouped unevenly throughout the eight planets.

Natural satellites in the solar system.

Moons come in many shapes sizes and types. The largest of these moons is ganymede which is one of the galilean moons. The solar system s planets and its most likely dwarf planets are known to be orbited by at least 219 natural satellites or moons. Other natural satellites in our solar system.

Natural satellites can come from a stray celestial body that gets pulled into a planet s gravitational pull or is formed from the debris of the primary shot into space by an external celestial object. All of these can be thought of as. It is the only moon known to have a dense atmosphere and the only known body in space other than earth where clear evidence of stable bodies of surface liquid has been found. 19 of them are large enough to be gravitationally rounded.

A majority of those moons belong to the planet of saturn the second most belonging to jupiter. Of these all are covered by a crust of ice except for earth s moon and io. In the solar system there are 219 satellites. Technically the term natural satellite could refer to a planet orbiting a star or a dwarf galaxy orbiting a major galaxy but it is normally synonymous with moon and used to identify non artificial satellites of planets dwarf planets and minor planets.

Moons also known as natural satellites orbit planets and asteroids. There are more than 200 moons in our solar system. The earth has 1 satellite mars has 2 jupiter has 63 saturn has 62 uranus has 27 and neptune has 13 natural satellites. Most orbit the giant planets with saturn and jupiter leading moon counts but even smaller worlds like pluto can have five moons in orbit.

Other bodies in the solar system like dwarf planets and asteroids also have natural satellites. Our solar system has eight official planets as well as millions of minor planets asteroids comets and other objects orbiting around the sun. Planets asteroids and comets orbit around stars such as our sun and so can also be thought of as natural satellites. As of july 2009 336 bodies have been formally classified as moons.

Planets and asteroids in our solar system orbit the sun. See more information on moons here.