Science 3/10/15 – Flashcards
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terrestrial planets
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- Earth - Mars - Venus - Mercury - relatively small and rocky
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Jovian planets
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- Jupiter - Saturn - Uranus - Neptune - huge, gas giants
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nebula
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a cloud of gas and/or dust in space
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planetesimal
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colliding matter in space forming small, irregular shaped bodies
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astronomy
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the science that studies the universe
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geocentric
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Greeks believed the Earth was a sphere that stayed motionless at the center of the universe
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heliocentric
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Aristarchus was the first Greek to believe in a sun-centered (heliocentric) universe
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retrograde motion
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each planet moves slightly eastward among the stars, then appears to stop and reverse direction for a time, then resume an eastward motion
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ellipse
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an oval-shaped path made by the planets around the sun
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astronomical unit
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the average distance between Earth and the sun
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rotation
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one of the main motions of Earth
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revolution
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the other main motion of Earth
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precession
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very slow motion in Earth's axis over a period of 26,000 years
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perihelion
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at perihelion, Earth is closest to the sun, about 147 million kilometers away
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aphelion
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at aphelion, Earth is farthest from the sun, about 152 million kilometers away
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perigee
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the moon is closest to Earth
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apogee
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the moon is furthest from Earth
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phases of the moon
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a change in the amount of the moon that appears lit
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solar eclipse
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when the moon blocks the sun and casts a dark shadow on Earth
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lunar eclipse
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when the moon moves within Earth's shadow
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crater
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round depressions in the surface of the moon
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ray
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splash marks that radiate outward for hundreds of kilometers
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mare (plural: maria)
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the dark, relatively smooth area on the moon's surface
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rilles
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found on the surface of the moon, these look similar to valleys and trenches
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lunar regolith
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composed of igneous rock, glass beads, and fine lunar dust (moon dirt)
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celestial sphere
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Imaginary globe where Earth is at the center and provides an easy way of describing position of objects in sky
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mass
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how much matter is in an object
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Which scientist proposed three laws of planetary motion?
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Kelper
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What is the shape of a planet's orbit?
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ellipse
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second law of planetary motion
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each planet revolves so that an imaginary line connecting to the sun sweeps over equal areas and equal time intervals
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Which scientist was the first to use a telescope in astronomy?
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Galileo
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third law of planetary motion
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the square of the length of time it takes a planet to orbit the sun is proportional to the cube of its mean distance to sun
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What movement of Earth is responsible for night and day?
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rotation
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What is the moon's period of rotation?
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27.3 days
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When the moon's phases are changing from new to full, the moon is said to be in what phase?
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waxing phase
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What must happen for a solar eclipse to occur?
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the moon must move directly in line between Earth and the Sun
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round depressions on the moon's surface
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craters
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How did Maria form on the moon?
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asteroids punctured the lunar surface allowing magma to bleed out
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Why does the moon have more craters on Earth?
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the moon has no atmosphere, so incoming objects don't burn up in the sky, they hit the moon directly
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How old is the moon?
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4.5 billion years old
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What information supports the giant-impact hypothesis of the moon's formation?
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- made of iron-poor mantle and crustal rocks (created lack of big iron core on the moon) - material lost water in debris ejection (no water on moon)
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Which planets have rings?
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Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, & Uranus
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Main difference between Jovian and terrestrial planets
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Jovian planets have gas and terrestrial planets have earth/land
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How does crater density tell the moon' geologic history.
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- the greater the crater density, the older the surface must be - scientists concluded that the moon evolved in three phases: the original crust, maria basins, and rayed craters
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The formation of the solar system from a huge cloud of dust and gases is what theory?
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the Nebular Theory
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What two main gases do Jovian planets have?
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Hydrogen & Helium
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Which types of minerals are more abundant on terrestrial than Jovian planets?
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silicate minerals
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Which planet shows evidence of water erosion?
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Mars
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Which planet has a cratered surface?
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Mercury
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Which planet has the greatest temperature extremes?
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Venus
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Which planet has high surface temperatures and a dense CO2 atmosphere?
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Venus
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Which thickly clouded planet reveals topography with plains, highlands, & volcanic structures?
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Mars
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What planet is Mons Olympus found on?
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Mars
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Which planet appears as a reddish ball with varied dark regions of changing intensity?
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Venus
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What force is currently responsible for shaping Mars' surface?
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wind
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Which features on Mars indicate a possibility of the presence of liquid water?
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gullies and stream-like channels
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Which planet is second only to the moon in brilliance in the night sky?
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Venus
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Which planet has a greater mass than the combined mass of all remaining planets and moons?
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Jupiter
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Which of Jupiter's moons is volcanically active?
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Io
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Which planet has the Great Dark Spot?
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Saturn
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Which planet's axis of rotation is almost parallel with its plane of orbit?
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Uranus
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What is Jupiter's Great Red Spot?
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the vortex of a storm
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asteroids
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small, rocky bodies usually found orbiting between Mars and Jupiter
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Where do most asteroids lie?
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between Mars and Jupiter
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coma
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the glowing head of a comet
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In what region do we find comets with short orbital periods?
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Kuiper belt
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meteors
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meteoroids that enter Earth's atmosphere and burn up
