Materials Needed

Large, flat oval or round rock
Black acrylic paint (for space background)
Yellow or gold acrylic paint (for the sun)
Blue acrylic paint (for Earth, Uranus, Neptune)
Red or orange acrylic paint (for Mars, Jupiter)
Beige or yellow-orange acrylic paint (for Saturn)
Gray acrylic paint (for Mercury, Moon)
White acrylic paint (for stars, Saturn rings)
Teal or green acrylic paint (for Uranus)
Fine detail brush
Medium round brush
Clear sealant spray
Pencil and solar system reference image

Step-by-Step Instructions

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Step 1: Paint the deep space background

Wash and dry your large rock. Paint the entire surface solid black for space. While still slightly wet, add tiny touches of deep blue or dark purple in some areas for a nebula effect. Let dry completely. Using a toothpick or fine brush, add hundreds of tiny white dots for stars scattered randomly across the surface.

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Step 2: Place the sun and sketch orbits

Paint a large bright yellow-orange circle for the sun in the left-center of the rock (to allow space for the planets). While slightly larger than the planets, it need not take more than a quarter of the space. Lightly sketch curved arc lines representing the orbital paths of the eight planets.

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Step 3: Paint Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars

Working outward from the sun, paint the four inner rocky planets. Mercury: tiny gray dot. Venus: small yellow-cream dot. Earth: slightly larger blue dot with a green-brown continent shape. Mars: slightly smaller than Earth, solid rust-red. Keep planets proportionally different in size.

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Step 4: Paint Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune

Paint the four outer gas giant planets: Jupiter: largest planet dot, orange with darker horizontal bands. Saturn: second largest, yellow-beige with thin elliptical white rings extending to either side. Uranus: medium teal-blue dot. Neptune: slightly smaller than Uranus, deep blue.

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Step 5: Add planet details and seal

Add Jupiter's Great Red Spot (tiny orange-red oval). Add thin curved lines on the orbital arcs. Label the planets in tiny text if space allows. Apply clear sealant to protect your solar system rock — a cosmic art piece with educational value.

Step 6: Add RoxGeo Code

On the bottom or back of your rock, write ROXGEO.COM followed by a slash and your rock’s unique code (e.g. ROXGEO.COM/ABC123). This lets the finder go directly to your rock’s profile page and log their discovery. If the rock is too small for the full address, write #ROX followed by the code without spaces (e.g. #ROXABC123) — it’s short, easy to search on Google, and leads straight to your rock’s journey page. Use a fine-tip permanent marker or acrylic paint pen, and seal it with clear varnish so the code stays readable through rain, sun, and adventure.

Helpful Tips

Look up a real solar system diagram before starting — relative planet sizes and colors matter.
Saturn's rings are the key detail that everyone recognizes — take extra care with the thin elliptical lines.
Earth's blue with a green continent shape is instantly identifiable and the most important planet to get right.
Use a large flat rock to give all eight planets enough space without crowding.
A black background with scattered white dots creates an unmistakable deep space atmosphere.
For the RoxGeo code on the bottom, use a waterproof permanent marker (like Sharpie) or an acrylic paint pen. Apply 2–3 coats of clear sealant over the code — this keeps it readable through rain, sun, and handling for months.
Writing #ROXCODE (e.g. #ROXABC123) on your rock makes it easy to find via Google search. We actively optimize for this hashtag, so anyone who searches for it will find your rock’s profile page quickly.
The full address ROXGEO.COM/CODE takes the finder directly to your rock’s card, where they can see its full travel history, previous finders, and photos from every stop on its journey.

Paint this rock and track its journey with RoxGeo!

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