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The Planets in Our Solar System
| Planet (or Dwarf Planet) | Distance from the Sun
(Astronomical Units
miles
km) | Period of Revolution Around the Sun
(1 planetary year) | Period
of Rotation
(1 planetary day) | Mass
(kg) | Diameter
(miles
km) | Apparent
size
from Earth | Temperature
(K
Range
or Average) | Number of Moons |
|---|
| Mercury | 0.39 AU, 36 million miles
57.9 million km | 87.96
Earth days | 58.7 Earth days | 3.3 x 1023 | 3,031 miles
4,878 km | 5-13 arc seconds | 100-700 K
mean=452 K | 0 | | Venus | 0.723
AU
67.2 million miles
108.2 million km | 224.68 Earth
days | 243 Earth days | 4.87 x 1024 | 7,521 miles
12,104 km | 10-64 arc seconds | 726 K | 0 | | Earth | 1
AU
93 million miles
149.6 million km | 365.26 days | 24 hours | 5.98 x 1024 | 7,926 miles
12,756 km | Not
Applicable | 260-310 K | 1 | | Mars | 1.524 AU
141.6 million miles
227.9 million km | 686.98 Earth days | 24.6 Earth hours
=1.026 Earth days | 6.42 x 1023 | 4,222 miles
6,787 km | 4-25
arc seconds | 150-310 K | 2 | | Jupiter | 5.203 AU
483.6 million miles
778.3 million km | 11.862 Earth years | 9.84 Earth hours | 1.90 x 1027 | 88,729
miles
142,796 km | 31-48 arc seconds | 120 K
(cloud tops) | 18
named (plus many smaller ones) | | Saturn | 9.539 AU
886.7 million miles
1,427.0 million km | 29.456 Earth years | 10.2 Earth hours | 5.69 x 1026 | 74,600
miles
120,660 km | 15-21 arc seconds
excluding rings | 88 K | 18+ | | Uranus | 19.18
AU
1,784.0 million miles
2,871.0 million km | 84.07
Earth years | 17.9 Earth hours | 8.68 x 1025 | 32,600
miles
51,118 km | 3-4 arc seconds | 59 K | 15 | | Neptune | 30.06
AU
2,794.4 million miles
4,497.1 million km | 164.81
Earth years | 19.1 Earth hours | 1.02 x 1026 | 30,200
miles
48,600 km | 2.5 arc seconds | 48 K | 2 | | Pluto (a dwarf planet) | 39.53
AU
3,674.5 million miles
5,913 million km | 247.7 years | 6.39 Earth days | 1.29
x 1022 | 1,413 miles
2,274 km | 0.04 arc seconds | 37 K | 4 | | Planet
(or Dwarf Planet) | Distance from the Sun
(Astronomical Units
miles
km) | Period of Revolution Around the Sun
(1 planetary year) | Period of Rotation
(1 planetary day) | Mass
(kg) | Diameter
(miles
km) | Apparent size
from
Earth | Temperature
(K
Range or Average) | Number of Moons |
|---|
 Meaning of the planets.
SunThe sun represents your will or life force. It
is the conscious, extroverted, positive, male side of yourself. The sun or solar principle provides the life energy that is
expressed by the rest of your chart. So-called "sun-sign" astrology can work as well as it does because the sun
is such an important feature of your chart/life, but one should never forget that there are other planets in your chart. The
moon, midheaven and the ascendant are of equal value in describing a life. Often women will project their sun on some man
instead of owning their sun, while men will forget that they have anything but the sun.
MoonThe moon represents the emotional side of your
existance. It is the unconscious, introverted, negative, female side of yourself. The moon or lunar principle provides a reflective
element to your chart, and so it works as a co-equal partner with your sun. Just as the sun and the moon both appear the same
size as seen from the earth (which is why solar or lunar eclipses can happen), the sun and the moon are of equal strength
in the chart. Often men can project their moon onto some women instead of recognizing that they too have a lunar nature, while
women can forgetthat they are anything but the mothering, nuturing moon. The lesson from astrology is that we are all our
planets, and achieving wholeness requires that we recognize all of our chart.
MercuryAs you travel outward
from the Sun, Mercury is the closest planet. It orbits the Sun at an average distance of
58 million km. Mercury is airless, and so without any significant atmosphere to hold in the heat, it has dramatic temperature
differences. The side that faces the Sun experiences temperatures as high as 420 ºC, and then the side in shadow
goes down to -173 ºC. Mercury is also the smallest planet in the Solar System, measuring just 4879 km across at
its equator. Mercury has only been visited two times by spacecraft.
The first was Mariner 10, back in the mid 1970s. It wasn’t until 2008 that another spacecraft from Earth made a close
flyby of Mercury, taking new images of its surface. Mercury
represents the concretely intellectual part of your personality, the functioning mind. Mercury represents communication and
the day to day activity of the intellect. Mercury rules short-distance communications and learning. Mercury rules both Gemini, where synthesis is the key, and Virgo, where analysis is the key. mercury can indicate the manner in which you think, but
not the level of your intelligence.
Venus is the second planet in the Solar System,
and it’s an almost virtual twin of Earth in terms of size and mass. Venus orbits at an average distance of 108 million
km, and completes an orbit around the Sun every 224 days. Apart from the size, though, Venus is very different from Earth.
It has an extremely thick atmosphere made almost entirely of carbon dioxide that cloaks
the planet and helps heat it up to 460 °C. If you could stand on the surface of Venus, you would experience 92
times the pressure of Earth’s atmosphere, with incredibly high temperatures, and poisonous clouds of carbon dioxide
and sulfuric acid rain. Several spacecraft have visited Venus,
and a few landers have actually made it down to the surface to send back images of its hellish landscape.
Even though there were made of metal, these landers only survived a few hours at best. Venus can be said to
represent "love" and is often paired with Mars in a polarity: The symbol for Venus is the standard biological symbol
for female, and the glyph for Mars is the symbol for male. Venus shows are ability at relating to others, and the nature of
the desire. Venus can indicate the type of people we are attracted to, or the nature of our sense of attraction. It rules
close partnerships and also marriage. Venus is associated with the Descendant of the chart. Venus is the ruler of both Taurus and Libra.
Mars
The 4th planet from the Sun is Mars, the second smallest
planet in the Solar System. It orbits the Sun at an distance of 228 million km. You might think Mars is large, but it’s
a tiny world, with about half the diameter of Earth, and just 1/10th the Mass. If you could stand on the surface of Mars,
you’d experience about 1/3rd Earth’s gravity. Mars has almost no atmosphere to help trap heat from the Sun, and
so temperatures can plunge below -140 °C in the Martian winter. Even at the height of summer, temperatures can
get up to 20 °C in the day – just barely shirt sleeve weather.
Mars
has been heavily studied by spacecraft. There are rovers and landers on the surface, and orbiters flying overhead. It’s
probably the likeliest place to search for life in the Solar System. Mars
has two tiny asteroid-sized moons: Phobos and Deimos. Mars represents
our active energy, the way we go out and get what we want, which can be determined by, amoung other things, Venus. The characteristics
of Mars in the birth charts shows the nature of our energy flow. Mars rules both the outer-directed Aries and the inner-directed Scorpio. Mars takes two years to circle the sun, and so we see all faces of mars many times
in our life. Mars is considered a "personal" planet, because it tells something about the way we are as individuals.
JupiterMighty Jupiter is the biggest planet in our Solar System. It’s so large, in fact, that it has 2.5 times the mass of all the rest of the
planets in the Solar System combined. Jupiter orbits from the Sun at an average distance of 779 million km. Its diameter at
the equator is 142,984 km across; you could fit 11 Earths side by side and still have a little room. Jupiter is almost entirely
made up of hydrogen and helium, with trace amounts of other elements. Jupiter
has been visited by several spacecraft, including NASA’s Pioneer and Voyager spacecraft; Cassini and New Horizons arrived
more recently. Only the Galileo spacecraft has ever gone into orbit around Jupiter, and it was crashed into the planet in
2003 to prevent it from contaminating one of Jupiter’s icy moons. Jupiter
has the most moons in the Solar System – it has 63 moons at last count. Jupiter
is the first of the so-called "social planets." People born within a one-year period will share the same sign position
of Jupiter. This planet show how the socialization process works within us. The urge of the Jupiter principle is to expand;
without limits, such as those provided by Saturn, Jupiter would expand without limits, filling the Universe, and, on a more
human level, gow fat and expend money without limit. Jupiter rules both Sagittarius and Pisces, lending a religious nature to both signs.
Saturnis the 6th planet from the Sun, and the
2nd largest planet in the Solar System. It orbits the Sun at an average distance of 1.4 billion km. Saturn
measures 120,000 km across; only a little less than Jupiter. But Saturn has much less mass, and do it has a low density. In
fact, if you had a pool large enough, Saturn would float! Of
course, the most amazing feature of Saturn is its rings. These are made of particles of ice ranging in size from a grains
of sand to the size of a car. Some scientists think the rings are only a few hundred million years old, while others think
they could be as old as the Solar System itself. Saturn has been
visited by spacecraft 4 times: Pioneer 11, Voyager 1 and 2 were just flybys, but Cassini has actually gone into orbit around
Saturn and has captured thousands of images of the planet and its moons. And
speaking of moons, Saturn has a total of 60 moons discovered (so far). Saturn
is the second of the two social planets, and it is often paired with Jupiter. Saturn often gets a bad rap as the bogy man
of the planets, but it is extremely important. Saturn helps us focus and defnie limits; without Saturn, Jupiter would expand
withoout limits (a good Saturn word), whereas without Jupiter, Saturn would contract us to a point. Saturn takes about 30
years to go around the sun, and its positions vis a vis its natal positions represent major turning points in our life. Saturn
can also bring a sense of limitation and dispair to our lives. Saturn rules the signs of Capricorn and Aquarius.
UranusNext comes Uranus, the 7th planet from the
Sun. It orbits the Sun at an average distance of 2.9 billion km. Uranus measures 51,000 km across, and is the 3rd largest
planet in the Solar System. While all of the planets are tilted on their axes, Uranus is tilted over almost on its side. It
has an axial tilt of 98°. Uranus was the first planet to be discovered with a telescope; it was first recognized
as a planet in 1781 by William Herschel. Only one spacecraft,
Voyager 2, has ever visited Uranus up close. It passed by the planet in 1986, and captured the first close images. Uranus has 27 known moons. Uranus
is the first of the three transpersonal or generational planets. It moves so slowly -- requiring 84 years to go once around
the sun -- that it tells more, unless configured to one of the personal planets or points, about the generation one was born
into than the nature of the person. Uranus represents the process of individuation, and can manifest itself as independence,
rebellion, revolution or eccentricity. Uranus rules the sign of Aquarius, giving Aquarius the individualistic nature it is known for. Uranus was discovered
between the American and French revolutions, certainly good symbols for the Uranian principles.
NeptuneNeptune is the 8th and final planet in
the Solar System, orbiting at an average distance of 4.5 billion km from the Sun. It’s the 4th largest planet, measuring
about 49,000 km across. It might not be as big as Jupiter, but it’s still 3.8 times larger than Earth – you could
fit 57 Earths inside Neptune. Neptune is the second planet discovered in modern times. It was discovered at the same time
by both Urbain Le Verrier and John Couch Adams. Neptune has only
ever been visited by one spacecraft, Voyager 2, which made a fly by in August, 1989. Neptune has 13 known moons. Nepture is another
transpersonal planet, taking 168 years to circle the sun. Neptune represents the spiritual or mystical side of ourselves.
It is the sensitive planet. At our level of development, Neptune often manifests itself in illusions, vagueness, wooley thinking
and the use of drugs such as alcohol. The discovery of Neptune took place at about the same time as the discovery of ether
in the rise of spiritualism. Neptune rules Pisces. Even from its name, we can tell that Neptune is a watery planet, and is important in religious people as well as performers.
PlutoPluto is the slowest moving of the known planets,
taking 248 years to circle the sun, so no one can experience all the sign positions of Pluto. Pluto seems to best represent
the different generations, so that we have the "baby-boomer" generation born with Pluto in Leo (1939-1958) and the
so called "generation X' born with Pluto in Virgo (1958-1973), as well as yet unamed generations born with Pluto in Libra
and Scorpio. In 1996 Pluto moves into Sagittarius, and another generation starts. In natal charts, Pluto can represent deep
(and often hidden) forces, changes and transformations. A strong Pluto can lead to obsessive or compulsive behavior, or involvent
in occult activities or depth psychology. Pluto rules the sign of Scorpio. Pluto was the only major planet discovered in the XXth Century, and about the time
that expreiment laid the basis for the development of the atomic bomb and atomic power.
NodeThe North Node of the Moon has several
meanings, depending on what school of astrology you follow. In the traditional meanings, the north node refers to a location
for intake of the psychic and physical substance you need to maintain life, while the south node is the point where excesses
of those substances are expelled. If one node is working well and the other is blocked it can lead to either psychic constipation
of lack of nutrition. Both are needed. In the cosmobiological school, the nodes collective refer to a point of contact with
those who are close to us, if not necessarily in a physical sense. The word "karma" is sometimes associated with
this connection.
AscendantThe Ascendant -- also called the rising
sign -- represents the mask we wear to face the world. Traditionally the ascendant was considered the most important point
in the chart, but since it can not be known without an accurate birthtime, the sun became much more prominent. The ascendant
-- the point where the sun rises in the east -- represents the defense mechanisms we develop to face a hostile, non-understanding
world. It also is how other people first see us, before they come to know us and the various personality forces represented
by the planets. Some people tend to identify with their ascendant, forgetting that it is only a facade and not the real person.
The ascendant also colors the way we see the outer world, so that two people with different rising signs will experience the
same event differently.
MidheavenThe Midheaven represents our true
self, that part of us that we can feel observing our mundane activities. The midheaven -- the highest point the sun reaches
in its diurnal cycle -- is not given nearly as much attentions as the ascendant, even though it is at least as important,
and arguably more important. The midheaven also depends on the time and location of our birth, but unlike the ascendent it
does not depend on the latitude. It also represents the individual or ego-consciousness. It has been said that the ascendant
represents the ego in the Freudian sense, while the midheaven represents the ego in the Jungian sense. In some ways the midheaven
is closer to who we really are than the ascendant. The midheaven - also called the MC for the Latin Midium Coeli
which means middle of the sky -- also stands for our career or calling, and how the outside, impersonal world see us. The
career is what we do to make a living, while the calling is what we have to do.
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