Beginners in Astronomy often have many questions about the stars, the planets, and the universe. Discover everything you ever wanted to know about astronomy but were afraid to ask here at Discovery.

The Astronomer's Dictionary   Questions with Answers What is global warming? How are stars created? Why do stars twinkle at night? Do all stars explode? Will the Sun ever explode? What are black holes? What are sun spots? How are planets created? How old is the universe? How does a telescope work? How do radio telescopes work? How was the moon formed? Why does the Earth circle the Sun? Do stars move? How hot is the sun? What is the Great Red Spot on Jupiter? Questions without (easy) Answers How did the universe 'start'? Is there intelligent life on other planets? What happens inside a black hole? Is there a tenth planet? *Is Pluto a planet? How big is the universe? What is Dark Matter/Dark Energy?     Many people confuse the term 'Astronomy' with 'Astrology'. These two studies are vastly different. Click below to read more about the important difference between these two fields. Astronomy vs. Astrology

The Planets Name Size (diameter) Distance from Sun (miles) Mercury 4,900 km 35,983,610 Venus 12,100 km 67,232,360 Earth 12,800 km 92,957,100 Mars 6,800 km 141,635,300 Jupiter 143,000 km 483,632,000 Saturn 125,000 km 888,188,000 Neptune 49,500 km 1,783,950,000 Uranus 51,100 km 2,798,842,000 Pluto 2,300 km 3,674,491,000 The Moons Mercury – none Venus – none Earth (1) – The Moon Mars (2) – Phobos and Deimos Jupiter (63)- Metis, Adrastea, Amalthea, Thebe, Io, Eruopa, Ganymede, Callisto, Themisto, Leda, Himalia Lysithea, Elara, S/2000 J11, Iocaste, Praxidike, Harpalyke, Ananke, Isonoe, Erinome, Taygete, Chaldene, Carme Pasiphae, S/2002 J1, Kalyke, Magaclite, Sinope, Callirrhoe, Euporie, Kale, Orthosie, Thyone, Euanthe, Hermippe, Pasithee, Eurydome, Aitne, Sponde, Autonoe, S/2003 J1, S/2003 J2, S/2003 J3, S/2003 J4, S/2003 J5, S/2003 J6, S/2003 J7, S/2003 J8, S/2003 J9, S/2003 J10, S/2003 J11, S/2003 J12, S/2003 J13, S/2003 J13, S/2003 J14, S/2003 J15, S/2003 J16, S/2003 J17, S/2003 J18, S/2003 J19, S/2003 J20, S/2003 J21, S/2003 J22, S/2003 J23. Saturn (56) – Albiorix, Atlas, Calypso, Daphnis, Dione, Enceladus, Epimetheus, Erriapo, Helene, Hyperion, Iapetus, Ijiraq, Janus, Kiviuq, Mimas, Methone, Mundilfari, Paaliaq, Narvi, Pan, Pellene, Pandora, Phoeve, Polydeuces, Prometheus, Rea, Siarnaq, Skadi, Suttung, Tarvos, Telesto Tethys, Thrym, Titan, Ymir, S/2004 S7, S/2004 S8, S/2004 S9, S/2004 S10, S/2004 S11, S/2004 S12, S/2004 S13, S/2004 S14, S/2004 S15, S/2004 S16, S/2004 S17, S/2004 S18, S/2004 S19, S/2006 S1, S/2006 S2, S/2006 S3, S/2006 S4, S/2006 S5, S/2006 S6, S/2006 S7, S/2006 S8 Uranus (27) – Cordelia, Ophelia, Bianca, Cressida, Desdemona, Juliet, Portia, Rosalind, Mab, Belinda, Perdita, Puck, Cupid, Miranda, Francisco, Ariel, Umbriel, Titania, Oberon, Caliban, Stephano, Trinculo, Sycorax, Margaret, Prospero, Setebos, Ferdinand Neptune (13) – Naiad, Thalassa, Despina, Nereid, Galatea, Larissa, Proteus, Triton, S/2002 N1, S/2002 N2, S/2002 N3, S/2002 N4, Psamathe Pluto (1) – Charon

 

Other Places to View from Our Region

Sometimes its hard to know what you are looking at when you gaze up at the stars in the night sky. Often amateur astronomers will see planets and moons without recognizing them. Below you will find some helpful tips on finding the planets during your night-time star gazing, as well as some useful information about our own planet, our sun, and different types of galaxies.

Click on each image below to get more information

SUN

MERCURY

EARTH

URANUS

NEPTUNE

 

PLUTO

 

GALAXIES