Stars
The Sun
The Sun is the star at the centre of our planetary system.
Zystronqia / Reference
A closer look.
Browse 20 reference profiles. Each page links to further reading and distinguishes source data from simplified guidance.
20 records
Stars
Sirius
Sirius appears as the brightest star in Earth’s night sky.
Stars
Polaris
Polaris lies close to the north celestial pole.
Stars
Betelgeuse
Betelgeuse is a red supergiant seen in the constellation Orion.
Stars
Vega
Vega is a bright star in Lyra and part of the Summer Triangle asterism.
Galaxies
Milky Way
The Milky Way is the galaxy containing the Solar System.
Galaxies
Andromeda Galaxy
Andromeda is a large spiral galaxy in the Local Group.
Galaxies
Large Magellanic Cloud
The Large Magellanic Cloud is a nearby galaxy prominent in southern skies.
Missions
Apollo 11
Apollo 11 carried the first people to land on the Moon in July 1969.
Missions
Voyager programme
The Voyager spacecraft explored the outer planets and continued studying the environment beyond them.
Missions
Hubble Space Telescope
Hubble observes the universe from Earth orbit.
Missions
James Webb Space Telescope
Webb is a space observatory designed primarily for infrared astronomy.
Rocky
Mercury
A small rocky world with a heavily cratered surface and a very thin exosphere.
Rocky
Venus
A rocky planet wrapped in a thick carbon-dioxide atmosphere and sulfuric-acid clouds.
Rocky
Earth
Our ocean-covered home has liquid surface water and an atmosphere dominated by nitrogen and oxygen.
Rocky
Mars
A cold desert world with a thin atmosphere, polar ice and evidence of ancient flowing water.
Gas giant
Jupiter
The largest planet has a hydrogen-helium atmosphere and a deep interior under enormous pressure.
Gas giant
Saturn
A low-density giant encircled by a prominent system of icy rings.
Ice giant
Uranus
A blue-green giant whose rotation axis lies close to the plane of its orbit.
Ice giant
Neptune
A distant blue giant with dynamic weather and strong atmospheric winds.