Have you ever looked at the night sky and tried counting the stars? You probably lost count pretty quickly. That is what space is like. It continues forever, far beyond what our eyes or minds can comprehend. Every planet, star and moon you have studied in school is present in the universe. The exciting part is that we have only looked at a small portion of it. There is still plenty to learn about space. Let's begin at the beginning and discover some incredible cosmic facts in plain language exclusively for you.

What is Space

The vast, open region that begins when Earth's atmosphere terminates is known as space. You enter space as soon as you pass through the layer of air that envelops our globe. There is almost no gravity, no sound and no air to breathe. Astronauts float around within spaceships because of this. The majority of space is empty and black, but not completely. It is home to stars, planets, moons, comets and galaxies. Scientists believe space never really ends. Just thinking about that is enough to blow your mind.

Our Solar System

We live in a solar system. A solar system is made up of a star and all the planets and objects that go around it. Our star is called the Sun. Eight planets travel around the Sun. In order from the Sun, they are Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Earth is the third planet from the Sun and as far as we know, it is the only planet with life on it. The Sun may look small from here, but it is about 150 million kilometres away. Its light takes around 8 minutes just to reach us.

Amazing Facts about Space

Space has no sound at all

Sound needs air to move from one place to another. Space has no air, so sound simply cannot travel there. If a rocket blew up right next to you in space, you would hear absolutely nothing. Complete silence.

A day on Venus lasts longer than its year

Venus spins very slowly on its axis. One full day on Venus is equal to 243 days on Earth. But Venus takes only 225 days to go all the way around the Sun. So the day is actually longer than the year there. Wrap your head around that!

The footprints on the Moon are still there

In 1969, astronauts walked on the Moon and left footprints in the dust. The Moon has no wind, no rain and no weather of any kind. Because of that, those footprints are still sitting there today, completely untouched and will likely stay that way for millions of years.

Saturn’s rings are not solid

If you look at Saturn from far away, its rings look like neat, flat circles around the planet. But they are not solid at all. They are made of countless pieces of ice and rock. Some of those pieces are as small as grains of sand. Others are as big as a house.

The Sun holds almost everything together

The Sun makes up about 99% of all the mass in our solar system. Every planet, moon, asteroid and comet put together makes up just the remaining 1%. Everything in our solar system moves because of the Sun's gravity. It truly holds everything in place.

Jupiter has a storm that never stops

Jupiter has a massive storm known as the Great Red Spot. This storm has been spinning for over 350 years without stopping. It is so enormous that two Earths could sit inside it side by side. No storm on Earth comes anywhere close to this.

Stars are born inside giant clouds

Stars are not just switched on like a light bulb. They develop gradually within massive gas and dust clouds known as nebulae in space. All that material is drawn together by gravity over millions of years. It eventually becomes so hot and dense that a new star is created, just like our Sun was billions of years ago.

Why Should Kids Learn about Space?

The concept of space is not limited to science fiction films. It directly affects our day-to-day existence and is really real. The weather forecast you hear every morning, the GPS that helps you find your way and even some medical devices used in hospitals are all products of space research. We can better appreciate how special and valuable Earth is by learning about space. We should take care of our planet because it is but a tiny dot in a vast universe.

Frequently Asked Questions about Facts about Space for Kids

1. What is space in simple words?

The enormous region that exists outside of Earth's atmosphere is called space. It is devoid of sound, air and weather. Space is utterly silent because sound cannot exist without air. It is filled with stars, planets, moons and galaxies that span billions of kilometers, even though it is largely empty.

2. Can a human survive in space without a spacesuit?

No, there is no oxygen in space and temperatures can drop as low as -270 degrees Celsius. A person would not be able to survive for even a minute without an appropriate spacesuit. Astronauts are shielded from dangerous radiation, air and warmth by spacesuits.

3. How many planets are there in our solar system?

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune are the eight planets that make up our solar system. In 2006, scientists agreed to reclassify Pluto as a dwarf planet, removing it from the main list. Previously, Pluto was ranked as the ninth planet.

4. Which is the biggest planet in our solar system?

Jupiter is the biggest planet in our solar system. It could hold more than 1,300 Earths. The Great Red Spot, a storm so enormous and potent that it hasn't stopped for hundreds of years, is another well-known feature of Jupiter.