The eight planets, in order of distance from the Sun, are Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Mercury is the closest to the Sun and Neptune, the eighth, is the furthest away.
The four inner planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars) are small and rocky. The asteroid belt lies between Mars and Jupiter. The four outer planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune) are much larger, and are made mostly of gas and ice.
A memory sentence helps, such as: My Very Easy Method Just Speeds Up Naming. Each first letter matches a planet in the right order.
