About the Solar System
Why do we see planets?
They reflect light from the Sun
The sun, planets and their moons, and a large collection of smaller objects such as asteroids, comets and meteors are, together, called the:
solar system
Which planet appears brightest in the night sky?
Venus
An object known as a "shooting star" is a:
meteor
Which planet is the largest in the solar system?
Jupiter
Name the 4 inner planets.
Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars
Name the 4 outer planets.
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune
What color does Mars appear in the sky?
Reddish
Pieces of rock from space large enough to pass through Earth's atmosphere and strike the ground are called:
meteorites
Name the planet closest to Earth in diameter, mass and strength of gravity.
Venus
Which planet takes the longest to complete one revolution around the sun?
Neptune, because it is furthest from the sun
What is the astronomer, Galileo Galilei famous for?
Building a telescope to prove the planets orbit the Sun
What is the Great Red Spot?
storm on Jupiter that has been observed for over 300 years!
A.B. - between Mars and Jupiter
K.B. - past Neptune
What is a comet?
an object in space made mostly of ice and dust
Describe when the force of gravity between two objects will be greatest.
-large masses
-close together or decreased distance
What is the difference between a day on a planet and a year on a planet?
-Day: one full rotation around its axis
-Year: one full revolution around the sun
Describe the differences between terrestrial planets and gas planets.
-terrestrial planets: rock and metal/closest to sun/high densities, slow rotations
-gas planets: hydrogen and helium/further from sun/low densities, fast rotations
Name the planet with the most moons
Jupiter
Name the first dwarf planet discovered and describe its orbit.
-Pluto in 1930
-Elliptical
Put the Sun, planets, Kuiper Belt and Asteroid Belt in order, beginning with the Sun and Ending with the Kuiper Belt
Sun, Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Asteroid Belt
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Kuiper Belt
Describe the forces at work to keep the planets in our solar system in orbit? What is the shape of the orbits?
inertia - forward motion & gravitational pull - between large objects in the solar system
sightly elliptical
Describe all the features Earth has that allows it to support life.
atmosphere, vast oceans, moderate temperatures
meteoroid - small rocky or metallic piece of an asteroid or comet orbiting the sun
meteor - large chunk of burning rock traveling through Earth's atmosphere "shooting star"
meteorite - piece of rock large enough to pass through the atmosphere and strike ground
Name the two factors that determine the strength of gravity between two objects.
Mass & Distance