Detailed info on nearby planets?

Question

I'm writing a sci fi story, and would like to keep it internally consistant.

A major consideration would be detailed information on the conditions of nearby planets. I do know most of the very basics of all the planets (and a tiny bit on Pluto), such as Mercury rotates slowly, and sunside is devastatingly hot, whereas nighttime is freezing cold, Jupiter produces its own heat, etc.

I'm hoping for more in depth info on the nature of planets in our solar system, and it would be fantastic if someone had info or links to info on planets on nearby solar systems.

Also, any good astronomy links in general would be appreciated.

Aii, yes I know it's consistent, I just tend to write online how I talk, and tend to pronounce it as though it were an "a." My apologies. However, yay for spell checker :P

Answer 1

Space.com and nasa.gov have search functions you can use to find interesting tidbits on planetary science. Most of this stuff is pretty matter-of-fact, so you'll have to use some imagination to give some idea of what it would be like to be there. Besides the planets, you might want to check out the larger moons of the outer planets, such as the Gallilean moons of Jupiter and Titan, Rhea, Dione, Tethys, and Enceladus around Saturn.

Here's a site that has some potentially interesting information:
http://cseligman.com/text/tableofcontents.htm#planets

Answer 2

Hi Khana,

A surprising good source, and maybe one you want to consider anyway since you are writing Sci-Fi yourself, is the number of sf stories out there by credible authors concerning the planets of the Solar System. Ben Bova's "Grand Tour" series of novels (Mars, Back to Mars, Moonrise, Moonwar, Jupiter, Venus, etc) are a good start.

A reasonably good looking list of non-fic planetary books is in the Amazon list referenced below.

Answer 3

wikipedia is not bad, and if you're unconvinced of the quality of the info there, you can look at the references at the bottom of the pages.

This may help
http://www.apples4theteacher.com/starwarp2.html

I did a search for "planet info for students". You may find more resources by doing that search or a similar one.

Jim, www life-after-harry-potter com

Answer 4

till she purely befell to stumble upon a Swedish attempt pilot taking an unauthorized destroy whilst finding out some new experimental plane, i could say she's a card-donning member of the Woowoo Brigade.

Answer 5

Go to space.com, and see if any information is available. They have several links. Also, please learn to spell better...and please take that as constructive criticism. I love science fiction, and your attitude about being internally consistent is to be applauded.