"Solar systems" redirects here. For the Sun and its planetary system, see Solar System. For a system of stars, see Star system. For the solar power company, see Solar Systems (company).
An artist's concept of a planetary system
A planetary system is a set of gravitationally bound non-stellar objects in or out of orbit around a star or star system. Generally speaking, systems with one or more planets constitute a planetary system, although such systems may also consist of bodies such as dwarf planets, asteroids, natural satellites, meteoroids, comets, planetesimals[1][2] and circumstellar disks. The Sun together with the planetary system revolving around it, including Earth, forms the Solar System.[3][4] The term exoplanetary system is sometimes used in reference to other planetary systems.
As of 1 May 2024, there are 5,662 confirmed exoplanets in 4,169 planetary systems, with 896 systems having more than one planet.[5] Debris disks are also known to be common, though other objects are more difficult to observe.
Of particular interest to astrobiology is the habitable zone of planetary systems where planets could have surface liquid water, and thus the capacity to support Earth-like life.
^p. 394, The Universal Book of Astronomy, from the Andromeda Galaxy to the Zone of Avoidance, David J. Dsrling, Hoboken, New Jersey: Wiley, 2004. ISBN 0-471-26569-1.
^p. 314, Collins Dictionary of Astronomy, Valerie Illingworth, London: Collins, 2000. ISBN 0-00-710297-6.
^p. 382, Collins Dictionary of Astronomy.
^p. 420, A Dictionary of Astronomy, Ian Ridpath, Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press, 2003. ISBN 0-19-860513-7.
^Schneider, J. "Interactive Extra-solar Planets Catalog". The Extrasolar Planets Encyclopedia. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
planetarysystem is a set of gravitationally bound non-stellar objects in or out of orbit around a star or star system. Generally speaking, systems with...
objects of the Solar System List of Solar System extremes List of Solar System objects by size Outline of the Solar SystemPlanetary mnemonic – Phrase used...
bodies (such as moons, asteroids, comets) and planetarysystems (in particular those of the Solar System) and the processes of their formation. It studies...
A planetary coordinate system (also referred to as planetographic, planetodetic, or planetocentric) is a generalization of the geographic, geodetic, and...
component of satellite systems around giant planets like Saturn. A ring system around a planet is also known as a planetary ring system. The most prominent...
is unknown, planetary habitability is largely an extrapolation of conditions on Earth and the characteristics of the Sun and Solar System which appear...
nebular hypothesis of solar system formation describes how protoplanetary disks are thought to evolve into planetarysystems. Electrostatic and gravitational...
not the planet setting is in a real star system on other worldbuilding characteristics". Various exotic planetary shapes appear in fiction. In Hal Clement's...
Planetary habitability in the Solar System is the study that searches the possible existence of past or present extraterrestrial life in those celestial...
May 2024, there are 5,662 confirmed exoplanets in 4,169 planetarysystems, with 896 systems having more than one planet. The James Webb Space Telescope...
originate from planetarysystems in which they are formed and later ejected, or they can also form on their own, outside a planetarysystem. The Milky Way...
inner Solar System. The Solar System is unique in that it has multiple belts. The observation of other planetarysystems has found these systems to have no...
original on 8 May 2024. Retrieved 8 May 2024. NASA Lunar and Planetary Science NASA Solar System Strategic Exploration Plans Soviet Lunar, Martian, Venusian...
substantial planetarysystem than a metal-poor, population II star. According to the IAU definition, there are eight planets in the Solar System, which are...
Group for PlanetarySystem Nomenclature (WGPSN), which maintains the astronomical naming conventions and planetary nomenclature for planetary bodies, and...
System; planets outside of the solar system are also known as exoplanets. As of 10 May 2024, there are 5,626 confirmed exoplanets in 4,183 planetary systems...
stellar encounters. Such a scenario may mean that Proxima Centauri's planetary companions have had a much lower chance for orbital disruption by Alpha...
star systems. Star systems are not to be confused with planetarysystems, which include planets and similar bodies (such as comets). A star system of two...
the Solar System, such as asteroids, the Kuiper belt, and comets. Planetary geology largely applies concepts within the geosciences to planetary bodies in...
rise to planets. There are several processes that could give rise to planetarysystems: "First generation" planets are planets that orbited the star before...
Planetary migration occurs when a planet or other body in orbit around a star interacts with a disk of gas or planetesimals, resulting in the alteration...
likeliest dwarf planets and dates of discovery A dwarf planet is a small planetary-mass object that is in direct orbit around the Sun, massive enough to...
Planetary nomenclature, like terrestrial nomenclature, is a system of uniquely identifying features on the surface of a planet or natural satellite so...
red dwarf star of spectral type M3V at the center of the Gliese 581 planetarysystem, about 20.5 light years away from Earth in the Libra constellation...
A planetary core consists of the innermost layers of a planet. Cores may be entirely solid or entirely liquid, or a mixture of solid and liquid layers...
planetary mass, including terrestrial planets (including Earth), dwarf planets, natural satellites, planetesimals and many other small Solar System bodies...
character exploring a planetarysystem stuck in a 22-minute time loop that ends with the sun going supernova. The player explores the system on foot and in a...
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