PLANET DEFINITION

A planet, is defined as a celestial body orbiting a star or stellar remnant that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity.The term planet is an ancient one having ties to history, science, myth, and religion. The planets were originally seen as a divine presence; as emissaries of the gods. Even today, many people continue to believe the movement of the planets affects their lives. The planets were initially thought to orbit the Earth in circular motions; after the development of the telescope, the planets were determined to orbit the Sun, and their orbits were found to be elliptical. There are eight planets in the Solar System (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune) and also at least three dwarf planets (Ceres, Pluto, and Eris). Many of these planets are orbited by one or more moons, which can be larger than small planets. There have also been more than two hundred planets discovered orbiting other stars. Planets are generally divided into two main types: large, low-density gas giants and smaller, rocky terrestrials.