solar system

noun

Definition 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

If all goes to plan, scientists hope that by studying the deep interior of Mars InSight will open a window into the processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system, including Earth, more than four billion years ago. — Robert Lee Hotz, WSJ, "NASA’s InSight Spacecraft Lands Safely on Mars," 26 Nov. 2018 Jupiter The largest planet in the solar system, Jupiter — or Zeus, in Greek mythology — is recognized for its colossal presence. — Aliza Kelly Faragher, Allure, "Birth Charts 101: An Astrology Beginner's Guide to Understanding the Planets," 12 Mar. 2018 All the planets in our solar system rotate on a tilted axis and therefore have seasons, solstices, and equinoxes. — Brian Resnick, Vox, "The winter solstice is Friday: 8 things to know about the shortest day of the year," 18 Dec. 2018 Given its high speed and its unusual trajectory, the reddish, stadium-sized whatever-it-is had clearly come from outside our solar system. — Casey Newton, The Verge, "Four ways the internet changed the midterm elections," 7 Nov. 2018 Ever since the 1950s, when physicists first dreamed up the idea of doing astronomy with neutrinos, the holy grail has been to observe the first object outside our solar system that emits these ghostly particles. — Mark Bowen, Scientific American, "Neutrinos on Ice: Astronomers' Long Hunt for Source of Extragalactic "Ghost Particles" Pays Off," 12 July 2018 By examining and mapping the interior of Mars, scientists hope to learn why the rocky planets in our solar system turned out so different and why Earth became a haven for life. — Marcia Dunn, The Seattle Times, "Mars touchdown: NASA spacecraft survives supersonic plunge," 28 Nov. 2018 Our solar system is in constant motion, with all eight planets — and dwarf planet Pluto — orbiting the sun. — Mindy Weisberger, Fox News, "Why Mars appears to be moving backward," 16 July 2018 All Envy campers come prewired for solar, and a portable 100-watt solar system is available at an additional cost. — Megan Barber, Curbed, "Pop-top camper van fits in your garage and sleeps a family," 12 July 2018

These 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.