Topic: The Solar System
Comet Origins: Blame the Solar Nebula!
As we’ve discussed before, many comets are thought to exist in the Oort Cloud. Others exist in the Kuiper Belt (more about that later). I thought it would be interesting to explore the origin of the comets themselves. Where did they come from?
Our Solar System is in a Boring Part of the Milky Way Galaxy!
Earth's Location in the Milky Way Galaxy
I know you’ve all been thinking it! The Solar System is in a really boring part of the Milky Way Galaxy. We are marooned out here in one of the remote (some may say back water) areas of the Orion Spiral Arm about 20 degrees above the galactic plane and about 28,000 light years from the center of the galaxy.
The Oort Cloud: Made of Comets, Has Massive Diameter
Not only fun to spell, fun to say as well! Oort. Not too many words begin with more than one o! The Oort Cloud is named after Dutch astronomer Jan Hendrik Oort.
Bodies and Planets Found in Our Whole Solar System
Our solar system is a nine planet system and is part of the Milky Way Galaxy – that oddly named galaxy. There is a bit of controversy around exactly how many planets there are in the solar system because some astronomers don’t count lowly Pluto. Hey, in my mind, if your big enough to be noticed from Earth, you should be counted!
