Last updated: 11 July 2026
Distance to Planets is a single question, answered live: how far away is that, right now? Not on average, not on some textbook date — right now, this hour, using the actual current positions of the Sun, the Moon, every planet, and a growing list of spacecraft.
Why we built this
Most sources quote a single "distance to Mars" or "distance to the Moon" figure, usually an average, and leave it at that. But planets don't sit still — their distance from Earth is constantly changing as they move along their own orbits at their own speeds. A number that was true in a textbook printed years ago may be far from true today. We wanted a calculator that computes the real, current distance and light-time between any two bodies in the solar system, recalculated the moment you load the page.
How the numbers are calculated
Planetary positions are computed using the VSOP87 orbital model, a well-established method for calculating the positions of solar system bodies at any given time, accurate to within a small percentage of true range. From those positions we derive separation distance, light-time delay, relative velocity, synodic periods, launch-window opportunities, and more. This is precise enough to understand real scale, trends, and timing — but it is not survey-grade precision suitable for spacecraft navigation. See the terms and conditions for the full accuracy note.
What's on the site
- A live distance and light-time calculator for any two bodies in the solar system
- A year-ahead view showing how a given pair's distance will change over the next 365 days
- Launch-window and Hohmann-transfer estimates between planets
- Live tracking context for satellites, aircraft, and interstellar probes such as Voyager 1
- A blog of short, plain-language articles answering the questions people ask most about distances in space
Who's behind it
Distance to Planets is maintained by a small, independent team with a background in software and an enthusiasm for orbital mechanics that occasionally outpaces our need to work on anything else. We are not affiliated with NASA, ESA, or any space agency — we simply build tools around publicly available orbital data.
Corrections and feedback
If a number looks wrong, we want to know. The most common cause is simply that a distance changes throughout the day and the figure you compared it to was from a different moment — but if something is genuinely off, get in touch through the contact page.