Planetary data tables
mean distance from Sun; minimum distance
from Sun; maximum distance from Sun; eccentricity of orbit;
inclination of orbit to ecliptic.
mean sidereal period; mean synodic period;
sidereal orbital velocity; sidereal mean daily motion; period
of axial rotation; inclination of equator to orbit.
equatorial diameter; mass; volume; mean
density; oblateness; surface gravity; escape velocity;
geometrical albedo; colour index.
angular equatorial diameter at unit
distance; angular equatorial diameter at minimum distance;
angular equatorial diameter at maximum distance; angular
equatorial diameter at mean greatest elongation (Mercury and
Venus); angular equatorial diameter at mean opposition distance
(Mars to Pluto); mean visual magnitude.
9. Planetary moons and rings:
The moons of the planets are not tabulated
here, as the numbers are now too vast and orbital data are
constantly being revised. Full listings of orbital elements,
physical parameters, and discoverers,
regularly updated, are posted by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
10. Asteroids (minor planets) and
comets:
The International Astronomical
Union’s Minor Planet Center at the Smithsonian
Astrophysical Observatory posts various useful tables on its website.
11. Planetary nomenclature:
A complete listing of all named planetary features, including information on rules and conventions,
can be found on the website of the U.S. Geological Survey.
Earlier versions of Tables 1–8 have
appeared in Norton’s Star
Atlas (Ian Ridpath, ed).