Space coloring pages
A ringed planet, stars and a rocket. Each picture has a different number of areas and colors, so you can pick anything from easy to detailed.
Pictures to color
About space pictures
Space pictures are set against a dark sky crossed by a glowing nebula band. Four-pointed stars are scattered across it, a large planet with a tilted ring and stripes dominates the scene, and smaller planets each carry a crater. Some variations add a rocket with fins and a round window.
Rings and stripes
The big ringed planet is a nod to Saturn, whose bright rings are made mostly of pieces of ice with some rock and dust. Because Saturn's axis is tilted, the rings appear at different angles from Earth over the years, and at times they are seen almost edge-on. The stripes recall the cloud bands visible on Jupiter and Saturn, which are shaped by strong winds in their atmospheres.
Why stars get points
Real stars are so far away that they appear as tiny points of light. The spikes seen in many telescope photos come from the way light bends around parts of the telescope itself, and the pointed star has become a familiar shorthand in illustration. In these pictures the four-point stars are small areas scattered over a big dark one, so they reward a little zooming. Want a fresh scene to color each day? See the daily picture guide.
Coloring tips
- 1Fill the dark sky early; it is often the biggest area and makes the planets and stars stand out.
- 2Four-point stars are small, so zoom in to reveal their numbers, or drag across them on a touchscreen.
- 3The tilted ring may split into pieces in front of and behind the planet, so check both sides.