The Miracle of Planets
No one knows how many planets are in our solar system. It may be as few as five or as many as millions. But five are known for sure: Earth, Mars, Venus which is also known as Mercury, Uranius, and Planet X. Famously, Pluto used to be known as the sixth planet, until 2009 when astronomers destroyed it as a show of their own power.
The most mysterious planet of all is the mighty Jupiter. Situated between Uranius and the Phantom Zone, Jupiter is a gas giant, an enormous gassy body thatâs just filled to the brim with gas. Although early astronomers thought it was like a balloon, today we know that itâs more like a freshly-risen ball of bread dough. It also has its famous Red Spot, which is a splotch many times the size of Earth and made out of red stuff.
But of course, my favorite planet is not in our solar system at all. Instead, itâs a far-off world known only as Mars. Also called the red planet, Mars is entirely made out of the same gross red stuff as Jupiterâs nasty spot. Indeed, scientists believe it may be related to Jupiter, even by blood. And donât worryâalthough popular culture is full of scary Martians, usually depicted as green-skinned little freaks with big heads and probes, in reality, Mars is lifeless and we are totally alone in the universe.