Space Vocab With Def

Question 1

orbit

Answer 1

the circular or elliptical path of an object as it revolves around another object

Question 2

Solar system

Answer 2

a system of objects that revolve around a star

Question 3

Galaxy

Answer 3

a group of solar systems, dust, and gas held together by gravity; our solar system is part of the Milky Way galaxy

Question 4

Universe

Answer 4

everything that exists in, on and around the Earth

Question 5

Satellite

Answer 5

a natural or artificial object that revolves around another object in space

Question 6

Impact crater

Answer 6

an oval or near-circular depression on the surface of a planet, moon, asteroid, or other celestial body.

Question 7

Rotation

Answer 7

the spinning of a celestial body, such as a planet, around an axis

Question 8

Revolution

Answer 8

the orbiting of an object around another object

Question 9

Season

Answer 9

a period of the year determined by the position of Earth as it revolves around the sun

Question 10

Equinox

Answer 10

the twice-a-year occurrence during which Earth’s axis is perpendicular (at a 90 angle) to a line joining the Sun and Earth’s center

Question 11

Solstice

Answer 11

the twice-a-year occurrence during which the Sun appears at the highest point in the sky as seen from the North or South pole

Question 12

Mare

Answer 12

Any of the large, low-lying dark areas on the Moon or on Mars or other inner planets.

Question 13

Eclipse

Answer 13

an event whereby one astronomical body passes between two other astronomical bodies

Question 14

Umbra

Answer 14

The darkest part of a shadow, especially the cone-shaped region of full shadow cast by Earth, the Moon, or another body during an eclipse. In a full lunar eclipse, which generally lasts for one or two hours, the entire disk of the Moon is darkened as it passes through the umbra.

Question 15

Penumbra

Answer 15

the shadow’s darkest, central part, where the light is totally excluded.

Question 16

Astronomical Unit (AU)

Answer 16

the mean distance from the center of the Earth to the center of the sun (about 149.6 million kilometers); used to measure distances in the solar system

Question 17

Ellipse

Answer 17

a closed plane curve generated by a point moving in such a way that the sums of its distances from two fixed points is a constant : a plane section of a right circular cone that is a closed curve.

Question 18

Terrestrial planet

Answer 18

A terrestrial planet, telluric planet, or rocky planet is a planet that is composed primarily of silicate rocks or metals. Within the Solar System, the terrestrial planets are the inner planets closest to the Sun, i.e. Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars.

Question 19

Gas Giant

Answer 19

A gas giant is a large planet composed mostly of gases, such as hydrogen and helium, with a relatively small rocky core. The gas giants of our solar system are Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.

Question 20

Asteroid

Answer 20

a small object made of rock or metal that orbits the sun

Question 21

Comet

Answer 21

a body of ice and dust that travels in a long narrow orbit around the sun

Question 22

Meteorite

Answer 22

a piece of rock or metal from space that strikes Earth’s surface

Question 23

Geocentric

Answer 23

having the Earth as the center

Question 24

Heliocentric

Answer 24

having the sun as the center

Question 25

Gravity

Answer 25

a force that exists between any two objects that have mass

Question 26

Tide

Answer 26

the regular fluctuation of sea water driven by the gravitational pull of the Moon and Sun on Earth’s oceans and other large bodies of water

Question 27

Waxing Moon

Answer 27

A waxing moon is any phase of the moon during the lunar cycle between the new moon and the full moon. When the waxing moon is between the new moon and the first quarter it’s called waxing crescent, and when it’s between the first quarter and the full moon it’s called waxing gibbous.

Question 28

Waning

Answer 28

A waning moon is any phase of the moon during the lunar cycle between the full moon and the new moon. It is a moon that is getting smaller every night. When it is between the third quarter and the new moon, it is called waning crescent, where crescent is between a half moon and a new moon, like a sliver.

Question 29

Gibbous Moon

Answer 29

having the observable illuminated part greater than a semicircle and less than a circle

Question 30

Crescent Moon

Answer 30

Crescent was first used to describe the shape of the waxing, or growing moon, and if you listen closely you can hear its similarity to increase.

Question 31

Full Moon

Answer 31

The full phase marks the half-way point of a single revolution of the moon around the earth. The period of the month when such a moon occurs.

Question 32

New Moon

Answer 32

The new phase marks the beginning of a single revolution of the moon around the earth. The period of the month when such a moon occurs.

Question 33

Quarter Moon

Answer 33

You can have a first quarter moon, when the Moon is halfway between a new moon and full moon. A new moon occurs when the Moon is directly in between the Sun and the Earth

Question 34

Perihelion

Answer 34

the point in the orbit of a planet, asteroid, or comet at which it is closest to the sun

Question 35

Aphelion

Answer 35

the point in the orbit of a planet or other orbiting body where it is farthest from the Sun or the body around which it revolves