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This 2D visual model illustrates the scale of the sun and planets in our solar system, and their current distance from each other.
On a dry lakebed in Nevada, a group of friends build the first scale model of the solar system with complete planetary orbits: a true illustration of our place in the universe.
Calculate the scaled planet diameters and planet-sun distances for a solar system model. Enter scale or diameter or distance, select to show table and/or map below, select options, then press Calculate.
This is an interactive model of the solar system that is quite, but not entirely, realistic. The vast distances and differences in space and time that are present in the real solar system can make observation boring or intimidating.
This page shows a scale model of the solar system, shrunken down to the point where the Sun, normally more than eight hundred thousand miles across, is the size you see it here. The planets are shown in corresponding scale.
The best way to understand the true dimensions of the solar system is to create a scale model. Use the tool below to visualize the solar system at various scales. Instructions
Sun is scaled one meter (39") in diameter. Actual Size of Sun: 1,391,000 km (864,000 mi) AU (“Astronomical Unit”) is the average distance between the Sun and Earth: 150 million km (93 million mi) A little more than 100 Sun diameters will span the distance of one AU.
