Essay Archive - Our Solar System at a Glance
Our Solar System at a Glance
From our small world we have gazed upon the cosmic ocean for untold
thousands of years. Ancient astronomers observed points of light that
appeared to move among the stars. They called these objects planets,
meaning wanderers, and named them after Roman deities -- Jupiter, king of
the gods; Mars, the god of war; Mercury, messenger of the gods; Venus, the
god of love and beauty, and Saturn, father of Jupiter and god of
agriculture. The stargazers also observed comets with sparkling tails, and
meteors or shoo....
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