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Phy > P6 - space phy > Flashcards

P6 - space phy Flashcards

(52 cards)

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1
Q

how does the days work

A

-sun goes from east to west because of the earth’s rotation on its own axis

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2
Q

what controls the tides

A

moon

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3
Q

why can you see the moon at night

A

-it reflects the sun’s light

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4
Q

time taken for the moon to completely orbit around the earth

A

27.5 days/ 1 month

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5
Q

moon phases

A

-the moon’s orbit relative to the earths change, results in varying sunlight on different parts of the moon
-its a natural satellite of earth

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6
Q

time taken for the earth to completely orbit around the sun

A

365 days

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7
Q

seasons

A

-caused by the earth’s axis being tilted so different hemispheres receive varying amounts of sunlight = diff seasons
eg. summer & winter/ spring & autumn
-countries near the equator don’t have seasons as they receive direct sunlight all year
-the further the country from the equator, the more noticeable the season changes

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8
Q

order of the 8 planets from the Sun

A

-My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nachos
-Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
-rocky planets - Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars
-gas giants - Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
-Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto have moons
-there’s an asteroid belt btw Mars & Jupiter

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9
Q

what orbits the Sun

A

-My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nachos
-dwarf planets - Pluto, Eris
-moons that orbit planets
-asteroids & meteoroids
-comets

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10
Q

what hold the celestial objects that the orbit the sun

A

-the sun’s gravitational pull
-greater the distance, the weaker the gravitational pull, slower orbital speed
-planets size affects the gravitational pull

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11
Q

heaviest object in the solar system

A

sun

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12
Q

what are moons

A

natural satellites that orbit planets

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13
Q

what are asteroids & meteoroids

A

lumps of rock

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14
Q

what are comets

A

-at their farthest distance form the Sun, they’re made of frozen gas, rocks & dust
-as they move to the sun, they warm up & release a trail of gas & dust behind them
-orbits the sun in irregular paths

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15
Q

origins of the solar system

A

from a nebula, a large rotating cloud of gas & dust

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16
Q

accretion disk

A

flat rotating disk made by the spinning motion of the nebula

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17
Q

formation of planets

A

-planets were formed from the leftover material from the nebula that wasn’t drawn into the sun’s gravitational pull
-through accretion, smaller particles (gas & dust) were pulled tgt by gravity to form larger rocks = Rocky planets
-the heat of the sun pushed the lighter materials away from it to form Gas Giants

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18
Q

speed of light

A

3 x 10^8 meters per second

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19
Q

elliptical

A

the shape of the the orbits around the sun

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20
Q

eccentricity

A

how much the orbit path deviates from a perfect circle

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21
Q

why are orbits elliptical

Study These Flashcards
A

-at the start, the object travels past the sun due to its own momentum from the big bang
-When it gets close to the sun, the sun’s gravity pulls it
-the object speeds up & its kinetic energy carries it to its furthest point of the orbit
-the object then slows down & is pulled back to the sun again

22
Q

formula for orbital speed

Study These Flashcards
A

2πr
——— = orbital speed (meter per second)
t
-orbital speed - speed of a planet in an orbit around the sun
-r - orbital radius - average distance from the planet to the sun
-t - orbital period - time taken for 1 complete orbit

23
Q

define star

Study These Flashcards
A

-ball of hot gas & plasma that is powered by nuclear fusion in its core
-usually has hydrogen & helium

24
Q

define nuclear fusion

Study These Flashcards
A

process of merging small nuclei into larger -nuclei to release energy
-needs high temp & pressure to start

25
define neubla
-region of space containing gas (mostly hydrogen) & dust -interstellar hydrogen clouds
26
define protostar
dense hot ball or gas formed by a collapsed nebula
27
define main sequence of stars
stable period of a star when it fuses hydrogen in its core
28
why do stars look like they're twinkling
their light passes through the moving air in the earth's atmosphere
29
milky way galaxy
-collections of many stars, dust & gas that are held together by gravitational forces -rotates around its center, 240 millions years for 1 turn -all the stars inside it move at a constant motion -diameter is 100 000 light years
30
difference btw galaxy & universe
-galaxy - collections of stars, dust & gas that are held together by gravitational forces -universe - collection of galaxies
31
Big bang theory
-the Universe expanded from a single point of high density and temperature -Universe is still expanding -Universe is approximately 13.8 billion years old
32
what is the closest star to earth
Sun
33
stars
-nuclear fusion releases lots of energy & heats up the star -very hot so they emit electromagnetic radiation, including visible light -approximately spherical shaped -size of star depends on the amount of material absorbed from the original nebula -star's life cycle depends on its size -move at a constant motion
34
betelgeyse
-bigger than the sun -star in the constellation of Orion -cooler star than sun = reddish colour
35
Procion B
-smaller than the sun -star in the constellation of Canis Minor -hotter than the sun = white colour
36
why does the sun and other stars look different
-sun if the closest star to earth so it is seen as a bright sphere. Other stars are very far away so they look like faint points of light
37
note: nebula from a supernova may form new stars with orbiting planets
38
define planetary nebula
glowing shell of ionizing gas
39
life cycle of a star about the size of the sun
-interstellar hydrogen clouds -protostar -main sequence -red giant; hydrogen in its core is exhausted, fusion slows down, core contracts under gravity, outer layers expand & cool -planetary nebula - red giant ejects it out layers -white dwarf -black dwarf; after white dwarf cools & fades
40
life cycle of a star bigger than the size of the sun
-interstellar hydrogen clouds -protostar -main sequence -red supergiant; fusion continues & forms heavy elements -supernova; fusion stops, core collapses due to gravity, outer layer explodes & releases lots of E -neutron star; object with mostly neutrons OR -black hole; strong gravity that its pulls light
41
define supernova
explosion of a star
42
will the sun become a black hole
no, it's too small
43
dust
-fine particles of material that was formed in older stars -these stars have exploded & scattered the dust in the Milky way
44
life cycle of stars
-nebula collapses -protostar -star
45
start of a protostar
-formed in a nebula -nebula collapses when disturbed by stars or objects that pass by -nebula collapses due to the gravitational forces between gas & dust particles that pulls them closer; as they get closer, they start to accelerate towards each other; nebula become dense -gravitational forces compress the nebula into a sphere that is denser than the original nebula = protostar -individual particles move very quickly = temp of the ball of gas is high -some material from the nebula forms a disk that rotating around the protostar. The material may form planets
46
protostar
-pressure & temp at core is higher than that on the surface -gravitational forces pull the material inwards -pressure from the hot core pulls the material outwards -They balance & create a stable star -if protostar continues to absorb material, its size, gravitational force, pressure & temp increases
47
protostar to star
-pressure in a protostar is eventually high enough for nuclear fusion reactions -nuclear fusion releases lots of gamma radiation in its core which heats all material absorbed by the star. The heat increases the rate of reactions -it is now hot enough to emit radiation (infrared, visible light, UV) of its surface eg. fusion of 2 hydrogen nuclei = helium -it starts the main sequence of its life
48
main sequence of stars
-during this period, the star is fairly stable in its size & temp while fusion hydrogen in its core -smaller the star, slower it uses up its hydrogen fuel & spend more time in the main sequence
49
similarities btw protostar & star
-both are rotating balls of hot gas -both pressure & temp increase towards the center
50
differences btw protostar & star
-star has nuclear fusion, protostar doesn't
51
be careful of units
52
rearrange order of cards

Phy (13 decks)

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