Solar System Models
Who came up with three laws of planetary motion?
BONUS: list the three laws
- planets orbit the sun in an ellipse
- planets travel faster closer to the sun
- farther planets take longer to orbit
Which of the following is not characteristic of all known planets?
A. orbits in an elliptical path
B. has a rotational axis
C. has one or more moons
D. revolves around the sun
C. has one or more moons
List the terrestrial planets.
BONUS: Which have moons?
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars
Bonus: Earth & Mars
A comet's tail points ________ (towards / away from) the sun.
BONUS: Why?
away from; the solar wind pushes it (even if the comet is traveling away from the sun)
What is the goal of the New Horizon's mission?
find evidence for the beginning of the solar system
What was useful about the geocentric model?
it provided a workable model of the sky and the most important objects in it
List the planets of the solar system from closest to farthest from the sun.
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
What category of planet can pass in front of the sun? What is this event called?
superior planets; (solar) transit
Name the five types of small solar system bodies.
comet, asteroid, meteoroid, meteor, meteorite
Which planet has the largest known volcano in the solar system?
BONUS: What is the name of this volcano?
Mars
Olympus Mons
Name two problems with the geocentric theory.
- Venus has phases
- planets appear to move backwards
- planets appear brighter at some times than others
Which of the following is not true of Saturn?
A. it emits more energy than it absorbs from the sun
B. it is the densest planet in the solar system
C. it has the most distinctive ring system of any planet
D. it has the only moon in the solar system with a dense atmosphere
B. it is the densest planet in the solar system
Why is Pluto not considered a planet?
A _________ is most likely, a ________ would burn up in the atmosphere, and a ________ hitting the earth is least likely.
meteoroid, meteorite, meteor
meteoroid, meteor, meteorite
True or False: An observer on Jupiter could possibly observe Earth in a transit of the sun.
true
According to Kepler's laws of planetary motion, planets move _______ when closer to the sun and _______ when further away.
faster, slower
Name two properties of Venus that make it uninhabitable.
- high heat
- high pressure
- poisonous gasses
- lack of water
Which planets could show retrograde motion from Venus?
Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
The collection of small solar system bodies that lie beyond Neptune’s orbit is called the ___________________________. The __________________ is the boundary between Mars and Jupiter.
Kuiper Belt, Asteroid Belt
it appears tilted on its side
Name two astronomers who supported the geocentric theory and three astronomers who supported the heliocentric theory.
geocentric - Plato, Aristotle, Ptolemy
heliocentric - Copernicus, Galileo, Kepler, Newton
What two things keep planets in orbit, according to Newton's laws?
gravity and inertia
Name five dwarf planets.
Pluto, Eris, Haumea, Makemake, Ceres
What is another name for a comet?
shooting star
When will Halley's comet next appear?
July 28, 2061