Moons vs. Planets — What's the Difference?

Natural satellites of planets.

Celestial bodies orbiting stars.

Often smaller and irregularly shaped.

Generally spherical due to gravity.

Vary in size and composition.

Independent in their orbits.

Often Moon The natural satellite of Earth, visible by reflection of sunlight and having a slightly elliptical orbit, approximately 363,100 kilometers (225,600 miles) distant at perigee and 405,700 kilometers (252,100 miles) at apogee. Its mean diameter is 3,475 kilometers (2,159 miles), its mass approximately one eightieth that of Earth, and its average period of revolution around Earth 29 days 12 hours 44 minutes calculated with respect to the sun.

Often have atmospheres.

A natural satellite revolving around a planet.

Can support moons.

The moon as it appears at a particular time in its cycle of phases

In the traditional model of solar systems, a celestial body larger than an asteroid or comet, illuminated by light from a star, such as the sun, around which it revolves.

A month, especially a lunar month.

A celestial body that orbits the sun, has sufficient mass to assume nearly a round shape, clears out dust and debris from the neighborhood around its orbit, and is not a satellite of another planet.

A disk, globe, or crescent resembling the natural satellite of Earth.

One of the seven celestial bodies, Mercury, Venus, the moon, the sun, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, visible to the naked eye and thought by ancient astronomers to revolve in the heavens about a fixed Earth and among fixed stars.

Moonlight.

The collection of life forms supported on Earth

Something unreasonable or unattainable

People as a whole; humankind or the general public

(Slang) The bared buttocks.

One of the seven revolving astrological celestial bodies that in conjunction with the stars are believed to influence human affairs and personalities.

To wander about or pass time languidly and aimlessly.

Plural of planet

To yearn or pine as if infatuated.

(Slang) To expose one's buttocks in public as a prank or disrespectful gesture.

(Slang) To expose one's buttocks to (others) as a prank or disrespectful gesture

Plural of moon

Infl of moon

Lack independent orbits.

May not have atmospheres.

Typically, moons don't have their own moons due to gravitational dynamics.

Planets can be terrestrial, like Earth, or gas giants, like Jupiter.

A planet's orbit is determined by the gravitational pull of its star.

Planets are generally much larger than moons.

Planets are classified based on their orbits, composition, and other characteristics.

Planets are celestial bodies orbiting stars.

Planetary rings form under specific conditions, not present for all planets.

Not all; Mercury and Venus, for example, have no moons.

Moons are natural satellites that orbit planets.

Planets form from the accretion of material in a star's protoplanetary disk.

Yes, some moons, like Ganymede of Jupiter, are larger than Mercury.

Yes, moons can affect tides and even the stability of a planet's rotation.

Most moons are inhospitable, but some, like Jupiter's Europa, might have conditions suitable for life.

Yes, rogue planets can exist without orbiting a star.

No, moons vary widely in appearance, size, and composition.