Space Technology
What is a telescope?
a device for detection and magnification of faraway objects
True or False: All planets have gravity.
True. Every planet has its own atmosphere allowing for gravity.
What is a constellation?
A group of stars that forms a recognizable pattern in the sky.
What number from the sun is Earth?
Third
True or False: The moon orbits around the sun.
False. It orbits Earth which orbits the sun.
What do satellites do?
They orbit around other objects in space.
List the planets in order.
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, ****Pluto
What are the different space objects that can be observed?
Dwarf planets, asteroids, meteors, meteoroids, meteorites, and comets.
Why do objects not float around on Earth?
Earth has gravity.
The moon causes what kind of tides?
Why does NASA use probes?
They use probes to gather information about a space object.
True or false: All of the inner planets are made of gas and only have a rocky inner core.
False. They are terrestrial planets, made mostly of rock and metal.
Explain the difference between comets, asteroids, meteors, and meteoroids.
Comets are made from icy rock that lets off gas and dust in a "tail" when flying close to the sun.
Asteroids have a rocky body that revolves around the sun, too small to be classified as a dwarf planet or planet.
Meteors are bits of rock that come from a meteoroid that enters Earth's atmosphere. Shooting star.
Meteoroids are small parts of asteroids that get created when asteroids crash into each other.
What is the shape of the Earth?
Spherical
What are the moon phases?
New moon, waxing crescent moon, first quarter moon, waxing gibbous moon, full moon, waning gibbous moon, last quarter moon, and waning crescent moon
What was the purpose of the rover?
To explore Mars and send back information to scientists on Earth without sending humans to the planet itself.
True or False: All of the outer planets are rocky planets made mostly of rock and metal.
False. They are gas giants and have a solid core.
Fill in the blank:
Each_____ is held in orbit by _____ from the _______.
planet, gravity, sun
What causes the tides on Earth?
The moon.
What is the difference between a solar eclipse and lunar eclipse?
Lunar eclipse: event in which the moon passes directly behind Earth and into its shadow.
Solar eclipse: event in which the moon's shadow blocks all or some of the sun's light from reaching Earth.
What are the four main technologies sent to space to gather information?
telescopes, satellites, probes, and rovers
True or false. All of the planets can sustain life and have moons.
False.
Why do stars look different? What do the colors mean?
All stars are in different parts of their life cycles. Some are younger and hotter so they are blue. White is the next hottest, then yellow, then red being the coolest.
What is the axis?
It is an imaginary line through the center of the Earth that is a fixed point of reference.
True or False: without the moon, Earth would float off into space.
False.