Earth-Sun-Moon Systems
This term describes the 28-day cycle of the moon's changing appearance as seen from Earth.
What are Lunar Phases?
This is the force that keeps planets in orbit around the sun and moons in orbit around planets.
What is Gravity?
These are the four "Terrestrial" or rocky planets closest to the sun.
What are Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars?
This is the primary energy source that drives the entire water cycle on Earth.
What is the Sun?
This type of pressure system is usually associated with "Happy" weather—clear skies and calm conditions.
What is a High Pressure System?
This specific alignment occurs when the Moon passes directly between the Sun and Earth, casting a shadow on Earth's surface.
What is a Solar Eclipse?
Our solar system is located in this specific spiral galaxy.
What is the Milky Way?
This is the collection of rocky debris located between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.
What is the Asteroid Belt?
This process occurs when liquid water is heated and turns into water vapor (gas).
What is Evaporation?
When a cold air mass pushes under a warm air mass, it creates this type of front, often resulting in thunderstorms.
What is a Cold Front?
Earth experiences seasons primarily because of these two factors.
What are Earth’s axial tilt and its revolution around the sun?
According to Newton, these two factors determine the strength of the gravitational pull between two objects.
What are Mass and Distance?
These "Gas Giants" are much larger and further from the sun than the inner planets.
What are Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune?
This is the process where water vapor cools down and turns back into liquid droplets to form clouds.
What is Condensation?
On a weather map, a Warm Front is represented by this color and shape.
What are red semi-circles?
During this specific lunar phase, the moon is located between the Earth and the Sun, making it appear invisible to us.
What is a New Moon?
This is the massive object at the center of our solar system that exerts the most gravitational pull.
What is the Sun?
This scale is used to measure the massive distances between objects in our solar system (approx. 93 million miles).
What is an Astronomical Unit (AU)?
Plants release water vapor into the atmosphere through this specific process.
What is Evapotranspiration?
Low Pressure systems are associated with this type of weather because air is rising and cooling.
What is cloudy, rainy, or stormy weather?
When the Northern Hemisphere is experiencing Summer, it is tilted in this direction relative to the sun.
What is toward the Sun?
If the distance between two space objects increases, the gravitational pull between them does this.
What is decrease?
Unlike planets, these objects are made of ice, dust, and rock and develop a "tail" when they get close to the sun.
What are Comets?
This force is responsible for pulling precipitation down to Earth and causing water to flow through rivers toward the ocean.
What is Gravity?
This is the term for a front that "stays still" because neither the warm nor cold air mass is strong enough to move the other.
What is a Stationary Front?