Planets in Order of Size

Our solar system is an exciting place that consists of several celestial bodies, each having a number of interesting features. Although quite large by itself, the solar system is just a minute part of the vast universe. It is believed to be billions of years old. It consists of the sun in the center and several other bodies including the planets in order, their satellites, asteroids, meteoroids etc. all revolving around the sun.

Do you know how many planets are there in the solar system? Most of us had studied in school that there are nine planets in the solar system. However, post 2006, Pluto was taken out of the list and is no more considered as a planet. It is now officially known as a dwarf planet. Thus, we now have only eight planets in our solar system. All these planets in the solar system differ widely in size from each other. Let us take a look at the planets in order from smallest to largest.

Planets in Order of Their Size

Mercury
We begin with Mercury, the smallest planet in the solar system. The diameter of Mercury is 3031 miles (4,878km), which is 38 percent of the Earth's diameter and its volume is only 5.4% of the Earth's total volume. Mercury planet is the closest planet to the sun.

Mars
Planet Mars has often been a subject of searches for life as space researchers believe that water existed on Mars some 3.5 billion years ago. However, it is actually much smaller than the Earth with a volume of only eight percent of that of the Earth. The diameter of Mars is 4,222 miles (6790 km). Although it is the fourth planet in the solar system, this 'red planet' stands in the second position when placed in the order of increasing size.

Venus
The planet Venus is a rocky planet characterized by the presence of a thick blanket of yellowish clouds filled with sulfuric acid. It has a diameter of 7,521 miles (12,104 km) and is located at a distance of 0.72 AU from the sun. The surface of planet Venus is filled with a number of large volcanoes.

Earth
Planet Earth is one of the most amazing planets of the solar system. It is the only planet where life can sustain. With a diameter of 7,926 miles (12,756 km), planet earth stands in the fourth position of planets in order of size. However, it is the largest of the four terrestrial planets of the solar system. With major part of the surface covered with water, the Earth is also known as the blue planet of the solar system.

Neptune
As Pluto is no more counted as a planet, Neptune is the last planet in our solar system. It is 30,775 miles (49,528 km) in diameter and is located at a distance of 30.06 AU from the sun. It has 13 moons and rings around it and is mostly made up of ice and rock.

Uranus
The planet Uranus has a diameter of 31,690 miles (51,118 km) and is the third largest planet of the solar system. It is located at a distance of 19.18 AU from the sun and has 27 moons and 13 rings around it. One of the interesting facts about planet Uranus is that it is a bit tilted and spins sideways, unlike other planets which spin right side upwards.

Saturn
Saturn is one of the most complex and researched planets of the solar system. This is mainly because of its rings and its natural satellites. It is believed to have 52 moons or natural satellites. The diameter of Saturn is 74,898 miles (120,536 km) and it is the second largest planet of the solar system.

Jupiter
Jupiter, also known as the king of planets, is the largest planet of the solar system. It has a diameter of 88,700 miles (142,800 km) and is located at a distance of 5.20 AU from the sun. Planet Jupiter has the largest number of moons revolving around it.

These were the planets in order of size from smallest to largest. Hope you found this information on planets in the solar system interesting!