NO. They orbit counterclockwise (anticlockwise) when viewed from above the Earth's north pole, which is the usual convention. (Mercury and Venus are called the "inferior planets" because their orbits are between the Sun and the Earth.)
I believe it has to do because Earth passes up inferior planets while the planets are in inferior conjunction. The only way retrograde works is if the earth is passing a planet. While a inferior planet is in superior conjunction it is not being passed up.
The best viewing position for inferior planets (Mercury and Venus) is when they are at greatest elongation, meaning they are at their farthest distance from the Sun in the sky. This provides the best visibility as they are higher above the horizon. The worst viewing position for inferior planets is when they are at superior conjunction, which means they are on the far side of the Sun and not visible from Earth.
the inner planets are sometimes called Terrestrial Planets
Actually Dwarf planets are planets which are very small in size and cannot be called planets but not as small to be called asteroids, so the name dwarf planets.
extraterrestrial...? wait, sorry, it's 'inferior planets'.
NO. They orbit counterclockwise (anticlockwise) when viewed from above the Earth's north pole, which is the usual convention. (Mercury and Venus are called the "inferior planets" because their orbits are between the Sun and the Earth.)
There are two inferior planets. One is venus-or sister planet-and the other in mercury. These two are inferior planets because their orbit is inside of the earths orbit. best time to see these planets is when they are their furthest from the sun. :)
I believe it has to do because Earth passes up inferior planets while the planets are in inferior conjunction. The only way retrograde works is if the earth is passing a planet. While a inferior planet is in superior conjunction it is not being passed up.
The planets that are further from the Sun than Earth is, can never be in inferior conjunction with Earth. So they would be Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Pluto and Ceres, are dwarf planets, but can't be in inferior conjunction with us either. Only Venus and Mercury can be.
There are two. They are Mercury and Venus. (An inferior planet is simply one that is closer to the Sun than Earth is.)
The best viewing position for inferior planets (Mercury and Venus) is when they are at greatest elongation, meaning they are at their farthest distance from the Sun in the sky. This provides the best visibility as they are higher above the horizon. The worst viewing position for inferior planets is when they are at superior conjunction, which means they are on the far side of the Sun and not visible from Earth.
Yes. The inferior planets not only move faster, but also have a smaller path, to go once around the Sun. So, both of these factors contribute for the interior planets to take less time to go once around the Sun.
The terms "inferior planet" and "superior planet" were originally used in the geocentric cosmology of Claudius Ptolemy to differentiate those planets (Mercury and Venus) having an epicycle that remained collinear with the Earth and Sun, compared to the planets (Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn) that did not
They are sometimes called "major planets" to distinguish them from the "minor planets" (the asteroids) and "dwarf planets" like Pluto.
the inner planets are sometimes called Terrestrial Planets
They have no moons. They are also the two planets with the hottest surface temperatures (Venus slightly hotter). In their orbits, the two are the only planets "inferior" to Earth (closer to the Sun).