Orbits and Motion
What is the regular path that an object takes as it revolves around another object?
What is an orbit?
What is the center of our solar system?
What is the sun?
What term describes natural objects that exist outside Earth's atmosphere (examples: planets, moons, asteroids)?
What are celestial bodies?
What region lies between Mars and Jupiter and contains many asteroids?
What is the asteroid belt?
What do we call a human-made object placed in orbit around Earth to collect data or provide services?
What is an artificial satellite?
About how many days does Earth take to complete one orbit around the Sun?
What is 365 days?
How many planets are in our solar system?
What is 8 planets?
What are small, rocky or metallic fragments in space called that create meteors when they enter Earth's atmosphere?
What are meteoroids?
What is the name of the largest object in the asteroid belt that is classified as a dwarf planet?
What is Ceres?
What is the name of Earth's natural satellite?
What is the moon?
Name the force that causes planets to orbit the Sun.
What is gravity?
Which planet is the hottest because of its thick, heat-trapping atmosphere?
What is venus?
What is Titan?
Asteroids are rocky, comets are icy and develop comas/tails near the Sun
What is 16 sunrises and sunsets?
What kind of orbit is more oval-shaped rather than perfectly round?
What is an elliptical orbit?
Which planet is the largest and could fit over 1300 Earths inside it?
What is Jupiter?
Why are many large planets and moons spherical in shape?
What is gravity that pulls material into a ball, producing a spherical shape
According to the IAU criteria explained in the booklet, list one reason Pluto was reclassified as a dward planet.
What is Pluto has not cleared its orbit of other debris?
Name one instrument or measurement Ex-Alta 1 carried?
What is a probe to measure electron density, digital fluxgate magnetometer, radiation dosimeter?
Approximately how fast (in km per hour) does Earth travel around the Sun?
What is 107,000 km/h?
Give the approximate distance from the Sun to Neptune in astronomical units, based on the booklet.
What is 30.05 AU?
Name two materials/ types of composition listed for celestial bodies (one for gas giants, one for some moons).
What are gases (e.g. hydrogen, helium) and ice (e.g., Europa), and or rock/ metal
Approximately how many kilometers in diameter is Ceres?
What is 940 km?
At about what altitude (in km) did Ex-Alta 1 orbit before burning up, and for how many months could it remain in orbit?