Astronomy Flashcards
Galaxies and the universe
We live in a medium sized galaxy called the milky way. It is a spiral galaxy because it moves in a spiral wind.
The universe is the big huge thing that all the planets and everything are in. Galaxies are clusters of stars where planets are.
Ex: The universe is like Canada and the galaxies are like all the cities
Anatomy of the sun
The sun is a star or ball of gas in the centre of our solar system. The sun is made up of hydrogen and helium atoms.
The sun is 4.6 billion years old. It has 5 billion more years before it dies out
What is the order of the planets?
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
What are terrestrial planets and what planets are they?
The terrestrial planets are Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. They are the first four planets that are the closest to the sun. They are called terrestrial planets because their core is made out of solid materials and you can land on them.
Mercury
Mercury is the closest planet to the sun. It takes 88 earth days to completely orbit the sun. It has no atmosphere causing up banged up look. It can’t stop rocks from hitting it because it has no atmosphere.
Venus
Venus is the second closest planet to the sun. It takes 225 Earth days to complete a full orbit around the sun.
Earth
Earth is the largest of all the terrestrial planets. It is also the only planet with water on its surface. It takes 24 hours to do a full rotation on itself and 365 days to do a full orbit around the sun. Rotation: when a planet revolves around itself. Revolution: When a planet revolves around the sun. The earth rotates on an axial tilt. This tilt causes the seasons to chance. When the north is closer to the sun, its our summer. At the same time it’s winter in the south because it is farther away. When the earth is at it’s straightest, it is spring and fall.
What is the goldilocks zone?
The goldilocks zone is where earth is. It is an area that is not too hot and not too cold for human life. If a planet is to close to the sun the water on it will evaporate. If its too far away then it will freeze to solid ice. If its in the goldilocks zone, it will be just right like earth.
The moon
The moon gives off no light but reflects off of the sun and that’s what makes it bright. The moon takes the same amount of time as the earth to complete a full rotation. This means that we only see one side of the moon. The other side is called the dark side of the moon.
What are eclipses?
“Eclipses occur when the Sun, Earth and moon line up together perfectly. The order in which these three celestial bodies line up will determine whether the eclipse is solar or lunar, as well as partial or total. There are two types of eclipses; solar and lunar.
Solar: These occur when the moon is directly between the sun and earth. The moon blocks the suns rays from reaching the earth. The part of the earth that is the darkest is called the umbra and is in the total solar eclipse. Around this small dark area is the penumbra, which is the only darkened by the moon; this is called a partial solar eclipse.
Lunar: These occur when earth is between the sun and the moon causing the light that would pass otherwise hit the moon passes behind the earth.
