Term
The sun is massive. It contains 99.8% of the mass in the solar system and is made up of several different elements. Which of these elements makes up about 25% of the mass of the sun? |
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Definition
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Term
What is Newton’s law of universal gravitation?
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Definition
Gravitational force increases as the mass of an object increases or as the distance between two objects decreases. |
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Term
The terrestrial planets include Mars, Venus, Earth, and which other planet? |
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Definition
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Term
How are Jupiter and Saturn similar? |
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Definition
They have many satellites. |
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Term
Which term describes a bright streak of light that results when a meteoroid burns up in Earth’s atmosphere? |
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Definition
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Term
What is the Heliocentric Model? |
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Definition
Sun Centered Solar System |
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Term
What is centripetal force? |
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Definition
Centripetal force is a force that makes a body follow a curved path. |
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Term
The Kuiper Belt is being constantly studied. To date, about how many objects have been found in the Kuiper Belt? |
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Definition
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Term
What is the primary atomic reaction that takes place within the sun and converts hydrogen atoms into helium atoms? |
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Definition
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Term
Much of the surface of Mars is dry and dusty. What weather conditions do winds on Mars most likely create on Mars? |
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Definition
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Term
The table below shows some information about the period of revolution of Earth and the gas giant planets.
Planet
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Revolution (days)
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Earth
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365
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Jupiter
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4,329
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Neptune
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60,152
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Saturn
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10,768
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Uranus
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30,660
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How long does it take Neptune to complete two full revolutions in Earth years? |
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Definition
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Term
Which stage in the formation of the solar system came first? |
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Definition
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Term
Pluto is mainly composed of which materials? |
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Definition
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Term
The diagram below shows positions from which Sanjay could be viewing a star. The star appears to be in the gray square.
[image]
From which position is Sanjay observing the star? |
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Definition
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Term
During the sunspot cycle, the number of sunspots rises and falls, and their locations change. What is the length of the sunspot cycle? |
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Definition
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Term
How did the terrestrial planets form? |
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Definition
Terrestrial planets developed from the collisions and mergers of rocky planetesimals in the inner part of the protoplanetary disk. |
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Term
Mercury is heavily cratered from meteorite impacts. What difference between Earth and Mercury allows Mercury to be more affected by meteorite strikes? |
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Definition
Mercury has almost no atmosphere, so meteorites strike the planet's surface rather than burning up. |
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Term
Identify three physical properties that characterize gas giant planets. |
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Definition
Large
Lower Densities
Hydrogen and Helium
Rocky Cores with Deep Atmosph.
Far from sun
Planetary Rings and Many Moons |
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Term
The sun is a low-mass star on the outer reaches of the Milky Way galaxy. Much like Earth, the sun has many different layers that define its structure. Identify the sun’s six layers. |
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Definition
Core, Radiative Zone, Convective Zone, Photosphere, Chromosphere, and Corona |
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Term
Describe a comet, and indicate where comets are located. Explain why a comet develops a tail when it nears the sun. |
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Definition
A comet is a small body of ice, rock, and cosmic dust that follows and orbit around the sun.
The comet's tail forms when heat from the sun causes ice in the nucleus to vaporize releasing gas and dust. |
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Term
Compare and contrast the heliocentric and geocentric models of the Solar System. |
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Definition
Heliocentric Model- Sun Centered
Geocentric Model- Earth Centered |
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Term
Scientists once classified Pluto as a planet. Then they reclassified it as a dwarf planet. Explain why Pluto was reclassified. |
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Definition
Pluto meets two of the three planetary requirements. It is round because of its own gravity, and it orbits the sun. However, a planet must also have a clear orbital path, and Pluto does not. |
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