SINCE 1828
solar system
nounDefinition of solar system
: the sun together with the group of celestial bodies that are held by its attraction and revolve around it
also
: a similar system centered on another star
Examples of solar system in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
These small craters are important because astronomers can use them to estimate the number of small asteroids floating around in this part of the solar system. — Avery Thompson, Popular Mechanics, "NASA Releases New, High-Quality Image of Ultima Thule," 28 Jan. 2019 Now the two are venturing further afield with Exoplanet, a limited-edition candle that rockets that earthy fragrance out of the solar system—and into your home. — Laura Regensdorf, Vogue, "Only 500 of This Artist’s Space Kit Candle Are Up for Grabs—And They’re Totally Worth the Hype," 30 Nov. 2018 Hydrogen fused into helium, and for billions and billions of years, the center of our solar system has blazed on. — Jill Kiedaisch, Popular Mechanics, "When the Sun Dies, a Giant Crystal Will Take Its Place," 11 Jan. 2019 There's just one problem: Kepler 452b, as it's known, lies beyond the confines of our solar system – a whopping 1,400 light years away from us. — Saqib Shah, Fox News, "Mysterious 'Super Earth' planet 'most likely' candidate to host life - but there's a huge problem," 3 Aug. 2018 Usually, Mercury travels from west to east in the solar system. — Spoon U, Teen Vogue, "How Mercury Retrograde Can Actually Affect Your Eating Habits," 27 July 2018 Please sit down before viewing, because falling over is a side effect of getting up close and personal with the star of our solar system. — Shannon Stirone, WIRED, "Space Photos of the Week: Scientists Are Seeing Red Over Jupiter’s Spot," 30 June 2018 Carbon-containing asteroids like Ryugu have attracted interest in part because they're thought to harbor water-bearing minerals that may hold clues about the origin and evolution of our solar system. — David Freeman /, NBC News, "Japan's Hayabusa 2 space probe snuggles up to odd-looking asteroid," 26 June 2018 To push these results further, Namouni and Morais built a model of our solar system in its current layout. — National Geographic, "Is an Interstellar Asteroid Trapped Near Jupiter? Get the Facts.," 21 May 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'solar system.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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