Planet Properties

This data is from the National Space Science Data Center's Fact Sheet site. Click on a planet's name to bring up the fact sheet at NSSDC. I have put together a list of links to excellent tours of each planet. Click here to bring up that list.
Planet Mass Diameter density oblateness rotation distance revolution eccentricity inclination axis tilt

(* ME) (km) g/cm3 [=(De-Dp)/De]
(A.U.)

(deg) (deg)
Mercury 0.0553 4880 5.43 0.000 58.81 d 0.387 87.97 d 0.2056 7.0 0.1
Venus 0.815 12,104 5.20 0.000 243.69 d 0.723 224.70 d 0.0068 3.4 177.3
Earth 1.000 12,742 5.52 0.0034 23.9345 h 1.000 365.26 d 0.0167 0.00 23.45
Mars 0.107 6780 3.93 0.0065 24.623 h 1.524 686.98 d 0.0934 1.85 25.19
Jupiter 317.83 139,822 1.33 0.0649 9.925 h 5.203 11.86 y 0.04845 1.305 3.12
Saturn 95.162 116,464 0.687 0.098 10.50 h 9.539 29.46 y 0.05565 2.489 26.73
Uranus 14.536 50,724 1.32 0.023 17.24 h 19.182 84.01 y 0.0472 0.773 97.86
Neptune 17.147 49,248 1.64 0.017 16.11 h 30.06 164.79 y 0.00858 1.773 29.56
Pluto 0.0021 2274 2.05 0.0 6.405 d 39.53 247.68 y 0.2482 17.15 122.46
Notes: Mass is given in Earth masses (1 ME = 5.977 × 1024 kilograms); diameter is the ``volumetric mean diameter'' that takes into account the planet's oblateness; oblateness measures how much a planet bulges at the equator [= (equatorial - polar diameter)/(equatorial diameter)]; distance is the semi-major axis in astronomical units (1 A.U. = 1.496 × 108 kilometers); rotation and revolution are the sidereal rotation period and sidereal orbital period, h = hours, d = days; eccentricity is the the orbital eccentricity = 1 - (perihelion/semi-major axis); inclination is the tilt of the orbit with respect to the ecliptic, and axis tilt is the tilt of the planet's rotation axis with respect to its orbital plane.

Other planet links

last updated: 21 May 2001

Is this page a copy of Strobel's Astronomy Notes?

Author of original content: Nick Strobel