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Image of the Solar System planets. Top image shows the rocky planets and the bottom image shows the gas giants.

A planet is a large object such as Venus or Earth that orbits a star. Planets are smaller than stars, and they do not make light.

Jupiter is the biggest planet in the Solar System, while the smallest planet in the Solar System is Mercury.

Planets are shaped like a slightly squashed ball (called a spheroid). Objects that orbit planets are called satellites. A star and everything which orbits it are called a star system.