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EarthSci > chapter 4&5 > Flashcards

chapter 4&5 Flashcards

1
Q

The Sun is a main sequence star T/F?

A

true

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2
Q

What is the structure of the Sun? (name the layers)

A

Made up of gas that becomes increasingly dense as you go towards core
-Photosphere is visible outer layer of star
- chromosphere is layer of gases that surround the photosphere
- From the centre it goes: core, radiation zone, convection zone, photosphere,
chromosphere, corona

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3
Q

What is the most common element in the Sun?

A

hydrogen

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4
Q

What is the purpose of NASA’s Genesis mission and how was this accomplished?

A
  • Purpose was to collect particles from the solar wind to be studied
  • Was accomplished by a robotic spacecraft that had panels made of foils such as
    gold, sapphire, and diamond
  • These panels collected the particles and then retracted into a carrier capsule to
    return to Earth
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5
Q

What was surprising about the results of the Genesis mission?

A

isotopic compositions of oxygen and nitrogen implanted in the wafers are significantly different to those in most of the Solar System objects for which we have measurements

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6
Q

What is a Sunspot? Why are they black?

A

A sunspot is a region of the Sun’s photosphere marked by lower than average
temperature, thus appearing black

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7
Q

Does the Sun have a magnetic field?

A

Yes, due to interaction of unique properties of matter within layers of sun although unsure of precise ‘generator’

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8
Q

How often does the Sun’s magnetic field usually flip or how long does a solar cycle last?

A

Magnetic field flips every 11 years or so (solar cycle is approx. 22 years)

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9
Q

What is a solar cycle?

A

The time it takes for the magnetic field to flip and then flip back to where it started

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10
Q

Does the solar wind reach the Earth?

A

Yes, the particles react with earth’s magnetic field

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11
Q

What are two effects of magnetic storms on Earth that are caused by solar flares?

A
  • First is interference to complete breakdown of power grids and systems carrying telemetric signals
  • Second is the northern or southern lights
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12
Q

What is the solar wind?

A
  • An outflow of charged particles (mostly electrons) at a high velocity
  • A solar flare or eruption increases flow
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13
Q

How does the aurora borealis form?

A

Particles from the solar wind enter the earth’s atmosphere at the poles and the collisions with particles in the atmosphere is what produces energy in the form of
light

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14
Q

What are the stages of the Sun from birth to death?

A

In chronological order: birth, a long growth period, expansion into red giant, white dwarf, black dwarf

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15
Q

What is the difference between a refractor versus a reflector telescope?

A

Refractor collect light by means of a glass lens (or combination of lenses)

Reflector collect light with a curved mirror

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16
Q

Define orbital velocity, escape velocity and geostationary

A

Orbital velocity: just enough velocity to place a satellite in position to orbit the Earth

Escape velocity: minimum velocity for an object to escape Earth’s gravitational pull

Geostationary: a satellite that stays over the same spot all the time

17
Q

Name the planets in order of their distance to the Sun

A

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto

18
Q

Which planets are the gas giants

A

Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

19
Q

Which planets are the terrestrial planets?

A

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars

20
Q

What are the characteristics of a terrestrial (or gas) planet?

A

Terrestrial: dense, made mostly of rock and metal, fairly small, only 2 have satellites

Gas: huge, low density, composed mostly of hydrogen and helium, surrounded by rings, may satellites

21
Q

What is the asteroid belt?

A

Between the terrestrial and gas planets is a band of asteroids

22
Q

What is the largest object in the asteroid belt?

A

Largest object in belt is called Ceres

23
Q

What reasons led to Pluto being declassified as a planet in 2006?

A

It was too small, too dense, had an irregular orbit

24
Q

Where is the Kuiper Belt and what does it contain?

A
  • It is located past Pluto

- It contains icy bodies of all shapes and sizes

25
Q

What is the definition of a planet?

A

A planet is a celestial body that

(a) is in orbit around the Sun
(b) has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a nearly round shape
(c) has cleared the neighbourhood around its orbit.

26
Q

What are the differences between a planet, a dwarf planet and a small solar system body?

A
  • Dwarf planets also orbit the sun and have sufficient mass to overcome rigid body
    forces, however it has no cleared the neighbourhood around its orbit
  • Small solar system bodies are all other objects except satellites orbiting the Sun
27
Q

What are the problems with the nebular hypothesis in terms of the evolution and position of the planets?

A

It doesn’t explain why huge planets form far from the young sun while the smaller planets formed much closer

28
Q

How did the position of the planets in the solar system evolve?

A
  • The large gas giants started relatively close together

-Jupiter migrated towards the sun and “snowplowed” the asteroids towards the sun,
pushing them together

  • Saturn then followed Jupiter migrating towards the Sun and the two planets’ forces pushed each other back outwards
  • The remaining asteroids clustered into the terrestrial planets and the gas giants spread out more
29
Q

In terms of planetary rearrangement, what are the Nice model and the Grand Tack model?

A

Nice: The big four planets started interacting with each other and these interactions pushed Uranus and Neptune further out in this way

Grand Tack: Jupiter initially migrates towards the sun pushing asteroids inward creating a mini disk, Saturn follows later and catches Jupiter, they both swing around and move back to their current positions

30
Q

In terms of planetary rearrangement, what are the Nice model and the Grand Tack model?

A

Nice: The big four planets started interacting with each other and these interactions pushed Uranus and Neptune further out in this way

Grand Tack: Jupiter initially migrates towards the sun pushing asteroids inward creating a mini disk, Saturn follows later and catches Jupiter, they both swing around and move back to their current positions

31
Q

What does the Grand Tack model tell us about how quickly Jupiter formed?

A

The Grand Tack model occurs within 5 million years

32
Q

How does the Nice model explain the positions of Neptune and Uranus? Relate this to the Late Heavy Bombardment?

A
  • Neptune and Uranus were pushed out by interactions with each other and Jupiter and Saturn
  • This shift outwards would have interfered with small orbiting bodies causing them to ‘fall’ towards the Sun
33
Q

What is the evidence for the Late Heavy Bombardment (two kinds of evidence)?

A

Craters all over the surface of the moon and Mercury

A particular isotope of tungsten being found in very old rocks in Greenland

34
Q

What is obliquity? How does it occur?

A

The angle between the equatorial plane and the orbital/ecliptic plane of a planet

35
Q

Is our solar system typical?

A

No, other systems are hypothesized to look like ours

36
Q

Define/compare geocentric versus heliocentric models of the solar system

A

In the Geocentric model, the Earth is at the center of the Solar System

In the Heliocentric Model, the Sun is at the center of the Solar System

37
Q

History of the model of the solar system involves many players – know the contributions of the heliocentric crowd: Aristarchus, Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo

A

Aristarchus: placed the Sun at the centre of the Solar System

Copernicus: put the Sun in the centre of the system, had Earth rotate around the Sun, and had the Earth revolve on an axis once per day

Kepler almost agreed with Copernicus, but added that planets had somehow been pushed into their orbits by the Sun (a magnetic force that was strongest near the Sun and weakened with distance outward). He then put together Kepler’s 3 laws:

- The Law of Orbits: all planets move in 
 elliptical orbits, with the sun at one focus
-The Law of Areas: a line that connects a 
 planet to sun sweeps out equal areas in 
 equal times
-The Law of Periods: the square of the 
 period of any planet is proportional to the 
 cube of the semimajor axis of its orbit

Galileo: the first to observe the planets through a telescope and greatly improved the lenses of existing models of telescopes and agreed with Copernicus’ model as well

38
Q

Define perihelion and aphelion

A

Perihelion: the point of nearest approach of a planet to the sun

Aphelion: the point of greatest separation of a planet to the sun

EarthSci (5 decks)

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