How Many Moons are in the Solar System
Written by Fraser Cain
Want to know how many moons there are in the Solar System? Well, let's add them all up.
Mercury – 0
Venus – 0
Earth – 1
Mars – 2
Jupiter – 63
Saturn – 60
Uranus – 27
Neptune – 13
That totals 166 moons in the Solar System.
Pluto isn't a planet any more, but it has 3 moons of its own, so that would bring the total to 169.
The inner planets have been well explored by telescopes and spacecraft. Although a few more moons were discovered in the last few years, it's unlikely that many more moons will be found. But if new spacecraft were ever sent to Uranus and Neptune, they would probably find more.
And who know what NASA's New Horizons spacecraft will find when it gets to Pluto.
Want to know what's the biggest moon in the Solar System? And here's a list of all the planets in the Solar System.
Here's a list of the largest moons in the Solar System. And here's NASA's Solar System Exploration page.
We have recorded a whole series of podcasts about the Solar System at Astronomy Cast. Check them out here.
Filed under: Astronomy
