astronomy Flashcards
(20 cards)
ptolemy
belived that earth was the center of the universe and the planets and sun revolved around it
copernicus
beloved that the sun is the center of the universe and all the planets revolved around the sun
Brahe
recorded very precise observations of the planets and stars
kepler
used Brahe’s work to determine that all the planets revolve around the sun in elliptical orbits
galileo
used a telescope to make important discoveries about the moon and sun
newton
discovered that all objects in the universe attract each other through gravitational force
hubble
proved that other galaxies exist beyond the Milky way
ursa major
constellation in north sky(big dipper)
ursa minor
smaller version of big dipper(little dipper)
Orion
a prominent constellation, also known as “The Hunter,” readily visible in the winter sky in the northern hemisphere
canis major
a constellation in the southern celestial hemisphere, known as the “Greater Dog” in Latin.
Cassiopeia
a prominent constellation in the northern sky, easily identifiable by its distinctive “W” or “M” shape
red giant
a large reddish star in its life cycle
white dwarf
small hot dim start that is the leftover center of an old star
main sequence star
location on the hr diagram where most stars lie
supernova
gigantic explosion in which a massive star collapses and throws its outer layers into space
black hole
object so massive and dense that light cant escape its gravity
parallax
the apparent shift in position of a nearby object (like a star) against a background of distant objects, due to a change in the observer’s viewpoint, such as the Earth’s orbit around the Sun
light year
a unit of astronomical distance equivalent to the distance that light travels in one year, which is 9.4607 × 1012 km (nearly 6 trillion miles).
Polaris
a star located near the North Celestial Pole
