Our Solar System

Over the course of her career, Amita Vadlamudi worked as a computer systems engineer for several financial services companies. In her spare time, Amita Vadlamudi enjoys learning about ancient Roman and Greek gods.
 With the exception of earth, the seven remaining planets in the solar system are named after ancient Roman gods, such as Mercury, god of travel, and Venus, goddess of love and beauty. The blood red tint of one planet encouraged astronomers to use the name of Mars, god of war. Neptune’s bluish appearance, meanwhile, was aptly named for the god of the oceans and seas.

 The king of all Roman gods, Jupiter, was, of course, given the solar system’s largest planet. Interestingly, Uranus was originally named Georgium Sidus (Georgian star) by Sir William Herschel in honor of King George III. Uranus, the Greek god of the heavens, did not gain widespread recognition as a name for nearly a century.

 While Pluto is no longer classified as a planet, ancient Roman astronomers named the dwarf planet after the god of the underworld.