These sunspots are the size of Jupiter

Image of the sun from a satellite

This image shows a small portion of a nebula called the "Cygnus Loop." This supernova remnant lies 2,500 light-years away in the constellation Cygnus the

Swan. (Courtesy of Jeff Hester (Arizona State University) and NASA)

This is an image of the Crab Nebula, a supernova remnant 6,000 light years away. Copyright Association of

Universities for Research in Astronomy Inc. (AURA)

What is a light year?

A light-year is a unit of distance. It is the distance that light can travel in one year. Light moves at a velocity of about 300,000 kilometers (km) each second. So in one year, it can travel about 10 trillion km. More precisely, one light-year is equal to 9,500,000,000,000 kilometers (5,890,000,000,000 miles)

This is the Vela Supernova Remnant. This nebula is the remnant of a supernova that exploded about 10,000 years ago.

Venus

AsteroidsAsteroids are rocky and metallic objects that orbit the Sun but are too small to be considered planets. They are known as minor planets.

Meteors: shooting stars

Meteor

Comet

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