Article
Article
Interplanetary matter
Article By:
Kuchner, Marc J. Department of Astronomy, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California.
Last reviewed:August 2020
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.349900
Low-density dust or gas that fills the space in a planetary system around or between the planets. Most interplanetary matter in the inner solar system is dust created by collisions among asteroids or released by comets as they are heated by the Sun. Ionized gas, launched at high speeds from the Sun as the solar wind, also permeates the solar system and interacts with planets. Interplanetary matter has also been seen in extrasolar planetary systems; these systems are called debris disks. Viewed from a nearby star, the interplanetary dust around the Sun would outshine the Earth; it is one of the brightest components of the solar system.
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