Yuri is still haunted by the space flight accident that killed his wife six years ago. He now works as part of a team on the Toy Box, which cleans up debris from space flight paths. The team includes Hachimaki, who loves working in space; Fee, a tough tomboy with a smoking habit; and Pops, an experienced orbital mechanic who helps calm the stress of the job.
Planetes was first published in English by Tokyopop from October 7, 2003 to February 8, 2005. Their release contained 5 volumes as they had split volume 4 into two books. Dark Horse Manga republished the series in two omnibus volumes on December 22, 2015 and May 3, 2016, respectively. The series was also published in Brazilian Portuguese by Panini Comics/Planet Manga from May 2015 to November 2015.The series was the winner of the 2002 Seiun Award for Best Comic in science fiction.