It tells the sci-fi story of Ion, an inhabitant of the planet Salta, who tries to fight negative forces in an age of chaos.

[6] Planets was the first Eloy album to be issued in the United Kingdom in 1982, a year after its initial release, simultaneously with Time to Turn, with alternative artwork designed by Rodney Matthews.

[7] After Colours was considered as a step too far from Eloy's musical identity, the band's leader Frank Bornemann decided to switch back to the concept album norm that made them successful, this time in a more emphatic and grandiose way than ever before: a double concept album, comprising from Planets and Time to Turn.

[6] He wrote a prologue of more than 1,000 words explaining the sci-fi backstory of the album, which was printed on the gatefold along with the lyrics, as a continuous story.

[9] The German music press was negative towards it, but the complete Planets/Time to Turn project was very well received in the UK, where both albums were released simultaneously in 1982.