An internal combustion rotary engine comprising a housing, at least one sun wheel centered about the central axis and positioned within one of at least one cylindrical compartment of the housing, and including a sun wheel circumference and at least one semicylindrical receptable defined along the sun wheel circumference, at least one lobe extending from an inner cylindrical surface of the compartment, and at least one planet wheel received in the at least one semicylindrical receptable of the sun wheel. The at least one planet wheel may be configured to engage the inner cylindrical surface of the cylindrical compartment and include at least one indentation configured to be received by the at least one lobe when the at least one planet wheel rotates along the inner cylindrical surface. Air intake and compression as well as combustion and exhaust may be performed within the same or different compartments of the at least one cylindrical compartment.