Vocab
The study of the universe, celestial bodies, and phenomenons.
Astronomy
The turning, or spinning, of an object on it's axis.
Rotation
The process by which a large nucleus is split into smaller nuclei; this process powers nuclear power plants and bombs.
Nuclear fission.
The complete range of electromagnetic waves placed in order of increasing frequency.
Electromagnetic spectrum.
The process by which plants and some other organisms use light energy to convert water and carbon dioxide into oxygen and high-energy carbohydrates such as sugars and starches.
Photosynthesis
A large cloud of dust and gas in space.
Nebula.
The motion of a body, such as a planet or moon, along a path around some point in space.
Revolution
The process by which smaller nuclei merge together into a single larger nucleus; this process powers the sun.
Nuclear fusion.
A tide just after a new or full moon, when there is the greatest difference between high and low water.
Spring tide.
A stream of electrically charged particles produced by the sun's corona; deflected by Earth's magnetic field.
Solar wind.
The process of burning something.
Combustion
The center of mass of two or more bodies orbiting around each other.
Barycenter
The direct transfer of heat from one substance to another substance that it is touching.
Conduction
A tide just after a first or third quarter moon, when there is the least difference between high and low water.
Neap tide.
The two times of the year on which neither hemisphere is tilted toward or away from the sun; day and night are equal lengths in both hemispheres.
Equinox.
Planets made primarily out of gas, also known as "gas giants." Includes Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.
Jovian planets.
The wobbling of Earth's axis, changing the Earth's tilt by 0.5 degrees every 18 years.
Nutation
Process by which, in a fluid being heated, the warmer part of the mass will rise and the cooler portions will sink.
Convection
The transfer of energy by electromagnetic waves
Radiation
Either of the two times in the year, the summer solstice and the winter solstice, in which the N or S hemispheres experience their longest or shortest days due to the orientation of the tilt.
Solstice.
The point in a planet's orbit in which it is furthest from the sun. Also when the planet travels slowest.
Aphelion.
A slow motion of earth's axis that traces out a cone over a period of 26,000 years.
Precession
Incoming solar radiation.
Insolation.
shortwave radiation emitted by the sun; most UV rays are blocked by the ozone layer in the upper atmosphere
UV (ultraviolet) Radiation.
The point in a planet's orbit in which it is closest to the sun. Also when the planet travels fastest.
Perihelion