RECORD 01
The largest planet — Jupiter
Jupiter is the largest planet in the Solar System. More than a thousand Earths could fit inside it by volume, although it is made mostly of gas.
1,000+ Earths by volumeTEO KOSMOS FOR YOUNG EXPLORERS
Space Records
Twenty amazing records that reveal the biggest, hottest, fastest and most surprising things in space.
Planets
RECORD 02
The hottest planet — Venus
Venus is not the closest planet to the Sun, but its thick atmosphere traps heat. Its powerful greenhouse effect makes the surface hotter than a blazing oven.
≈ 465 °C
RECORD 03
The fastest winds — Neptune
Distant Neptune has some of the fastest winds on any planet. They can race faster than a high-speed train.
2,000+ km/h
RECORD 04
The tallest mountain — Olympus Mons
Mars is home to Olympus Mons, the largest known volcano in the Solar System. Its slopes are so broad that it is hard to see the whole mountain at once from the Martian surface.
≈ 22 kmStars
RECORD 05
The closest star to Earth — the Sun
The Sun is our nearest star and Earth’s main source of light and warmth. It looks bigger than other stars only because we live close to it.
≈ 150 million km
RECORD 06
The closest star after the Sun — Proxima Centauri
Proxima Centauri is a small red star in another stellar system. Even at the speed of modern spacecraft, a trip there would take thousands of years.
4.24 light-years
RECORD 07
Some of the hottest stars are blue
A star’s colour hints at its temperature. Blue stars are hotter than yellow and red stars, even though blue often feels like a cool colour to us.
tens of thousands of °C
RECORD 08
Some stars are hundreds of times larger than the Sun
Supergiant stars can be so large that, if one replaced the Sun, its outer layers could stretch far beyond Earth’s orbit. That does not always mean it is hundreds of times heavier.
hundreds of solar radiiBlack Holes
RECORD 09
The most massive black holes weigh billions of Suns
The centres of large galaxies can hide supermassive black holes. Their masses equal millions or even billions of our Suns.
billions of solar masses
RECORD 10
Beyond the event horizon, return is impossible
The event horizon is an imagined boundary around a black hole. Once it is crossed, even light cannot return outward.
the speed of light
RECORD 11
Some black holes spin incredibly fast
Black holes can rotate, dragging nearby space along with them. Astronomers study that spin by watching the hot gas around them.
near light speed
RECORD 12
Quasars can outshine whole galaxies
A quasar is the very bright core of a distant galaxy powered by a supermassive black hole. Gas falling toward it heats up and releases enormous amounts of light.
as bright as galaxiesGalaxies
RECORD 13
The Milky Way contains hundreds of billions of stars
Our galaxy is a vast stellar home for the Sun. It holds so many stars that counting them one by one would be impossible.
hundreds of billions of stars
RECORD 14
Andromeda is the nearest large galaxy
The Andromeda Galaxy is our nearest large galactic neighbour. In a dark sky, you can see it with your unaided eyes as a faint patch of light.
≈ 2.5 million light-years
RECORD 15
Some galaxies span hundreds of thousands of light-years
Galaxies come in many sizes, from tiny satellites to true giants. Light needs an astonishing amount of time to cross a large galaxy from edge to edge.
hundreds of thousands of light-years
RECORD 16
The most distant light travelled for over 13 billion years
When telescopes study the farthest galaxies, they see ancient light. It is like a cosmic time machine showing the early Universe.
13+ billion years of travelSpace Missions
RECORD 17
Voyager 1 is the farthest human-made spacecraft
Voyager 1 launched in 1977 and travelled far beyond the planets. It still sends faint signals from interstellar space.
launched: 1977
RECORD 18
Apollo 11 first brought people to the Moon
In 1969, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first people to walk on the Moon. The mission showed that humans can explore other worlds.
1969
RECORD 19
Parker Solar Probe flew closest to the Sun
Parker Solar Probe was built to fly through the Sun’s outer atmosphere. Its heat shield helps the spacecraft endure extreme heating.
closest flight to the Sun
RECORD 20
James Webb has a 6.5 m main mirror
James Webb’s golden main mirror is made of 18 hexagonal segments. It collects faint infrared light from distant stars and galaxies.
6.5 m