Phosphorus (morning star) Phosphorus (morning star) Phosphorus (Greek "Phōsphoros") is the Morning Star, the planet Venus in its morning appearance. Φαοσφόρος ("Phaosphoros") and Φαεσφόρος ("Phaesphoros") are forms of the same name in some Greek dialects. This celestial object was named when stars and planets were not always distinguished with modern precision. Another Greek name for the Morning Star is Heosphoros (Greek "Heōsphoros"), meaning "Dawn-Bringer". The form Eosphorus is sometimes met in English, as if from Ἠωσφόρος ("Ēōsphoros"), which is not actually found in Greek literature, but would be the form that Ἑωσφόρος would have in some dialects. As an adjective, the Greek word
Solar System 7 light-years away. Compared to many other planetary systems, the Solar System stands out in lacking planets interior to the orbit of Mercury. The known Solar System also lacks super-Earths (Planet Nine could be a super-Earth beyond the known Solar System). Uncommonly, it has only small rocky planets and large gas giants; elsewhere planets of intermediate size are typical—both rocky and gas—so there is no "gap" as seen between the size of Earth and of Neptune (with a radius 3.8 times as large). Also, these super-Earths have closer orbits than Mercury. This led to hypothesis that all planetary systems start