Solar System Basics
This term describes a group of planets that circle one or more stars.
What is The Solar System
This ancient model placed Earth at the centre of all motion.
What is the geocentric model?
These four planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars) are known as this group.
What are the inner or terrestrial planets?
This planet is Earth’s “sister planet” because of similar size and composition.
What is Venus?
This is the largest planet in the solar system.
What is Jupiter?
This object’s gravity keeps all planets in orbit.
What is The Sun
This astronomer updated the solar system model by placing the Sun at the centre.
Who is Copernicus?
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune belong to this group.
What are the outer planets or gas giants?
This planet has extreme temperature differences due to lacking an atmosphere.
What is Mercury?
This planet is famous for having the most extensive ring system.
What is Saturn?
This unit is use to determine distances in astronomy
What is an astronomical unit
This astronomer showed that planets orbit in ellipses, not perfect circles.
Who is Kepler?
This term describes the apparent looping or backward movement of planets.
What is retrograde motion?
This planet is known for having liquid, solid, and gas water.
What is Earth?
This blue and greenish planet rotates on its side.
What is Uranus?
This term refers to the average distance between the Sun and an orbiting object.
What is orbital radius?
This early model of the solar system placed Earth at the centre, with all planets and the Sun moving in perfect circles around it.
What is the geocentric model?
Inner planets and outer planets differ mainly in these two characteristics.
What is size and composition?
Strong winds and giant dust storms occur on this red planet.
What is Mars?
This planet is the farthest from the Sun.
What is Neptune?
This is the reason kilometres are not useful for measuring distances between planets.
What is because the distances are so large that the numbers become too big to work with?
This Greek astronomer supported the geocentric model for nearly 1500 years.
Who is Ptolemy?
Mercury and Venus stay closest to the Sun and are only seen during these two times.
What are early morning and early evening?
Venus is hotter than Mercury because its atmosphere traps heat through this effect.
What is the greenhouse effect?
Jupiter’s Great Red Spot is actually one of these.
What is a Giant Gas Storm?