The Solar System
Name 4 (natural) objects that are part of the solar system
Planets, Sun, Moon, Asteroids, Comets, Meteors, Dust, Dwarf Planets
Name 2 technologies that have advanced our understanding of the Solar System
Refracting telescope, reflecting telescope, satellites, radio telescopes, space probes, etc
True or false – we get close to the Sun in summer and further away in winter
FALSE
What is the order of celestial objects during lunar eclipse
Sun – Earth - Moon
How many hours does it take for the Earth to rotate upon its axis?
24 hours
Name three features of the Sun (things you can see, what it is made of, layers, etc)
Sun-spots, Solar Flares, Photosphere, Corona, Hydrogen, Helium, light and heat
Describe the heliocentric and geocentric models of the universe
Heliocentric – Sun-centred
Geocentric – Earth-centred
Why does the Earth experience day and night?
Day and night are caused by the Earth’s rotation on its axis. The side of the Earth facing the sun is in day and the side facing away is in night
What is it called when the moon passes partially into the Earth’s shadow and what would you see?
A partial lunar eclipse – it would appear an orange-brown colour
How many days does it take for the Earth to complete a revolution of the Sun?
365 days (one year)
What is the force that pulls objects towards the centre of Earth?
Gravity
How has one culture influenced our understanding of the Solar System?
Mayan, Incan, Indigenous Australian, Islam, Egypt, India, China, Pacific Islands...
How does the tilt of the Earth affect the seasons?
Summer – hemisphere tilted towards the sun
Winter – hemisphere tilted away from the sun
The reason we don’t have a solar and lunar eclipses once a month is:
The moons axis is tilted and doesn’t always completely line up with the sun and the Earth as it orbits the Earth
Define the terms rotation and revolution in terms of the Earth’s movement
Rotation is moving around on a point or axis. Revolution is to move around an object. Earth rotates on its axis once every 24 hours and revolves (orbits) the Sun once per year
What is gravity and what is the relationship between mass and gravity?
Gravity is the force that attracts objects with mass to each other.
The more mass an object has, the greater the gravitational force it has.
Name one person that contributed to the geocentric model and one person that contributed to the heliocentric model of the Universe
Geocentric – Aristotle, Ptolemy, Plato
Heliocentric – Copernicus, Galileo, Newton, Kepler
How does the angle of sunlight affect seasons?
Summer – higher angle, more direct/concentrated sunlight, more heat
Winter – lower angle, less direct/more spread out sunlight, less heat
What causes the phases of the moon?
Half of the moon is lit by the sun. The amount of this half that is visible from Earth varies as the moon changes position in its orbit around the Earth
Define the terms axis and equator
The axis is an imaginary line through the poles that the Earth spins around
The Equator is an imaginary line drawn around the centre of the Earth halfway between the poles dividing the Northern and Southern Hemispheres
What is the difference between Mass and Weight and how to we convert between mass and weight?
Mass is the amount of matter in an object and is measured in kg (kilograms)
Weight is the force exerted by an object due to gravity and is measured in N (Newtons)
N = m x g
Describe 2 pieces of evidence that led scientists to the heliocentric model of the universe
Any of Galileo, Kepler or Newton’s observations
Use of satellites & space probes to take samples and images in space, etc...
Why do countries near the equator of the Earth not experience seasons in the same way the poles do?
Equator – less intense change in the angle of sunlight between summer and winter
Poles – greater angle change between seasons, sometimes facing the sun for 24 hours in summer
What happens during a solar eclipse?
The moon moves into direct line with the Sun and the Earth, blocking the sunlight. It casts a shadow on a small portion of the Earth for a few minutes.
What is the angle of the Earth’s tilt?
23.5o