Universe

Galaxy

A large collection of billions of stars, gas, dust, and gravity is a galaxy. What is the key to remembering this definition?

Is a Galaxy the biggest thing out there?

Astronomer Edwin Hubble recognized four basic types of galaxies: elliptical, spiral, barred spiral, and irregular. What is the name and shape of Earth's galaxy?

A light year is...

An astronomical unit is the average distance between the Earth and the Sun. So how many astronomical units is from Earth to the Sun?

Solar System: The collection of ______ and small bodies that orbit the Sun. The large bodies are called __________. Some of the smaller ones are: dwarf planets, moons, asteroids, and _________.

Our Solar System holds the Sun, 8 ________, and up to a trillion small ________ (dwarf planets, _______, asteroids, ________).

The difference between terrestrial and _________ planets in _______ is that terrestrial planets are ______ to the Sun.

The difference between ____________ and gaseous planets in temperature is that terrestrial planets are _______, while gaseous planets are colder.

What is another name for gaseous planets?

Which planetary body is bigger?

Most ________ bodies are made out of rock and ________. While gaseous bodies are made out of different types of _______.

Which is more dense: terrestrial or gaseous bodies?

Why are gaseous bodies denser?

What is composition?

The asteroid belt is ......

My Very Eager Monkey, Just Swallowed Uncle Ned

Why is Mars red?

_________ is the most distant from the Sun in our 8 planets.

Mercury is the ________ to the sun and has many craters and a ______ atmosphere.

The Atmosphere of a planet and its gravity is connected because the ________ the gravitational force, the greater the ______, the more closed off it is to let the atmosphere ______ into space, and the ________ the atmosphere is- closer to the ground level.

The level of gravitational force that a planet exhibits is related to the amount of ______ that the atmosphere carries because gravitational force increases with ________ and the _______ of the terrestrial body.

The thickness or thinness of the atmosphere depends upon the _________ or weakness of gravity. For example, the gravity on Jupiter is 318 times greater than Earth, and thus Jupiter's atmosphere is much ________ than Earth's. Gravity gets weaker the further away it is from a planet, so the atmosphere will be thicker near the __________.

Temperature plays a key role in the _________ of a planets atmosphere because the _________ the temperatures, the more the warm air will ________ and move faster, therefore expanding into space which would cause a _________ atmosphere. The air will be pushed out towards space and the atmosphere will be ______.

On Earth, temperatures _________ with elevation within the troposphere, the __________ level of the atmosphere, as the warmer molecules are escaping into the upper atmosphere. Temperatures, however, stabilize at higher atmospheric levels such as in the stratosphere. What does this show about Earth's global warming?

The more ______ the gases are within the atmosphere, the ______ the atmosphere.

Atmospheres are designated as thick or thin depending upon planetary _____, gas ________ and the type of ________ that are present, not simply the total depth of the atmosphere.

Certain atmospheric gases will create ______ atmospheres. For example, atmospheres with abundant hydrogen tend to be thicker as gases will combine with hydrogen for greater ____. Some planets, such as Venus, have very thick atmospheres largely composed of carbon dioxide and cannot support _____. The outer planets such as Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune also have very thick atmospheres, but they consist of ______ such as hydrogen, helium, methane and ammonia.

Thin atmospheres are characterized by the relative lack of hydrogen. What does this mean about Earth's atmosphere of 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and 1% of other gases?

Why is Europa a moon of Jupiter more compatible for life then Mars?

How does gravity keep people on objects, living things and more, stay on the Earth and not float off into space?

Our universe is constantly __________.

What keeps the Solar System going around and around continuously?

The Earth's rotation on it's axis results in ____ and ______.

One year = One __________.

The Earth's ______ combined with the Earth's _____ causes the __________.

Because the Earth's orbit is not a perfect circle, it results in the Earth being slightly ______ and _______ away from the Sun.

The same side of the Moon, __________ faces the Earth.

The Earth has just about the ______ temperature to sustain life. Which is due to the right amount of water and atmospheric _________.

Jupiter is the _______ planet in our Solar System so far. It has huge ______ that travel across its surface.

Why does Jupiter have may swirling storms like the Great Red Spot?

Why is Venus the hottest planet in the Solar System?

Uranus is the only planet that spins on its _______.

Saturn has a density lower than _____.

Word Bank: Asteroid, Solar (Star) System, Planet, Star, Moon, Universe, Super Cluster, Observable Universe, and Galaxy An asteroid is the first on the list, then a moon. _________, star, _______ System, Galaxy, _________ Cluster, ___________ Universe, and Universe.

A meteoroid is a rocky body from an ______ or a comet that travels through _______.

A meteor is a bright glowing streak of _____ that results when a ____________ ______ up in Earth's atmosphere.

A meteorite is a ________ that reaches Earth's surface without __________ up.

In early years, scientists or philosophers thought the Solar System was _____________. But really, we are heliocentric- ______ centered.

How does gravity affect Earth and other objects found in the Solar System? A. Moons' orbits around planets. B. Planets' order (from Sun) C. Annual amounts of snow on Earth. D. Pushing and pulling of tides on Earth. E. Colors of living things

What would happen to the planets in the solar system if the sun's gravitational force were to suddenly disappear? A. They will stop spinning. B. They will fly away in straight lines. C. They will start moving towards the Sun. D. They will stop moving and become static.

The moon orbits our Earth. The opposite would never be true; the Earth would never orbit the moon. One reason is due to the force of gravity. The object ____________ has a greater gravitational force and that determines what satellites orbit around it.

Scientists are trying to determine the effect of mass on the force of gravity between two objects. In this experiment, then scientists use the following procedure: 1) Place two large, empty barrels exactly 1m apart. 2) Measure the gravitational force between the two barrels and record in data table. 3) Add 10kg of water to each barrel. 4) Measure the gravitational force between the two barrels and record in data table. 5) Repeat steps 3 & 4 until the barrels are completely full of water. 6) Create a graph of Gravitational Force vs Mass from the data collected.

The planets in our solar system move around the Sun because of

If the force of gravity between the sun and the planets disappeared, what would happen to the path the planets follow?

Which force determines Earth’s path around the Sun?

What two factors keep Earth in orbit and around the sun and the moon in orbit around Earth?

The solar system likely began as a huge cloud of gas and dust. The force that MOST LIKELY caused this cloud to form the large clumps that became the Sun and planets is

Within the nebula that was the start of our solar system, a shock wave from an exploding supernova triggered dust particles to be drawn together to form a dense spherical cloud. The accumulation of dust set off a chain reaction. As the core of the cloud attracted more dust, its gravitational pull increased. As this pull increased so did all BUT its

The Sun has more gravity than the other planets in our solar system because the Sun is

Many stars are classified in terms of brightness, or

The process that fuels a star is BEST described as

The luminosity of a star, as viewed from earth, has an inverse relationship to the _________ of the star.

Many of the stars we see in the night sky are called blue giants. They put out more energy and burn millions of times brighter than the Sun. Why does the Sun appear much larger and brighter from Earth than blue giant stars?

Luminosity is the amount of energy emitted by a star each second. Stars radiate light over a broad range of frequencies in the electromagnetic spectrum, from the low energy radio waves to high energy gamma rays. The luminosity of a star depends on two factors:

All stars are not _____ _______ . Stars differ in brightness, _______ , mass, temperature, and age. Stars are classified by ________. The coolest stars are orange, then red, yellow, green, blue and finally blue-white. The _____ of a star in the photograph tells us about its brightness. Large stars are _________ stars. No one really knows ____________ stars there are. There are too many to count. The stars are not evenly spaced in the sky. Sometimes they are ________ together; in other places they are spread far apart. When we look up in the sky, we only see a very few stars. There are many more there. We can use a telescope to see them, but we still do not see many of the stars that are really there.

Apparent brightness of a star is _____ ________ the star ______ from Earth.

A certain star appears brighter from _______ locations on _______.

Luminosity is the _____ of light that is _______ off from a __________.

As light travels _______ you, it spreads out and covers a ________ area.

The ________ brightness of a star is measured in ______ per square meter.

________________ are extremely large explosions on the sun that can lead to geomagnetic storms on Earth.

____________ are relatively _____ clouds of gas suspended above the sun and controlled by _________ forces. They extend into the sun's atmosphere, usually in a looping shape.

What evidence do scientists use to explain how the solar system formed?

Jupiter is a gaseous planet. Its gravity is many times stronger than the gravity of Earth. What method would scientists use to collect information about the surface of Jupiter?

A group of scientists at a space research organization is studying a newly discovered galaxy. How can they collect data about the galaxy?

This is a space telescope that was carried into orbit by a space shuttle in 1990 and remains in operation today. Using instruments that observe in the near ultraviolet, visible, and near infrared ranges, this telescope can give scientists a look into other galaxies. What is the name of this telescope?

Which tool to study space is the LEAST expensive?

The first satellite launched into space by NASA was the Explorer 1 satellite, in 1958. The main instrument aboard was a sensor that measured high-energy particles in space called cosmic rays. Why can a satellite provide more valuable data than the traditional ground telescopes used by astronomers?

By studying a star's spectrum, scientists can work out its chemical make-up and temperature. What instrument do astronomers' use to carry out this task?

(Picture of the spectrum from gamma rays to radio waves) As you move from left to right across the electromagnetic spectrum in the image, the wavelength becomes

Optical or ______ telescopes collect _____ _______.

Pulsars, first discovered in 1967, are rotating neutron stars. The name pulsar comes from the fact that these neutron stars seem to pulse due to their rotation. Over the last decades, all BUT one type of electromagnetic wave has been used to detect and track pulsars. That is

Shown is an infrared image of a star, Beta Pictoris. Why would scientists use infrared light to take this image instead of visible light?

The space program has inspired many changes in the economics and culture of our country. The space industry is an important part of Florida life. What positive affect has space exploration had on Florida’s culture?

Nicolaus __________ was a Polish astronomer who is best known for the theory that the ____ is near the center of the universe and that the earth and other planets revolve around it. Copernicus did not believe that the planets were influenced by or_______ due to the sun; instead he believed that the sun was located near the center of the universe and that it was this ______ which influenced those bodies and caused them to revolve. When this theory was first published, the scientific community ____ ______ accept it.

Nicolas Copernicus was a Polish astronomer who is best known for the theory that the sun is near the center of the universe and that the earth and other planets revolve around it. Copernicus did not believe that the planets were influenced by or revolved due to the sun; instead he believed that the sun was located near the center of the universe and that it was this center which influenced those bodies and caused them to revolve. When this theory was first published, the scientific community did not accept it. Which reason BEST explains the reason for rejection of this theory?

Over the centuries, many scientific hypotheses have been advanced concerning the origin of Earth's Moon. One early theory was that the moon is a sister world that formed in orbit around Earth as the Earth formed. This theory failed because it could not ________ _____, unlike Earth's core, the moon lacks iron. A second early idea was that the moon formed somewhere else in the solar system where there was little iron, and then was captured into orbit around Earth. This failed when______ ______ showed the same isotope composition as the Earth. A third early idea was that early Earth spun so fast that it spun off the moon. This idea would produce a moon similar to Earth's mantle, but it failed when analysis of the total _________ ____________ and energy involved indicated that the present Earth-moon system could not form in this way.

Which of these had the greatest influence on our current understanding of the moon's origin and composition?

Gases exhibit certain behaviors given the temperature or pressure of the system. Review this model. What is the relationship illustrated here? All BUT ONE could apply.

During which phase of the moon is the side facing away from Earth illuminated?

P is a point on the surface of Moon as shown in the diagram. On a particular day, point P is seen on the brighter surface of the Moon. The Moon takes 27.3 days to rotate about its own axis and the same time to orbit Earth. How long is the point P expected to remain on the brighter side of the Moon?

During what period of time does the Moon appear in the sky on a new-moon day?

Which fact about the moon, as seen from the earth, is evidence that the amount of time the Moon takes to complete one rotation and one revolution are nearly identical?

The rotational period of the Moon about its axis is the same as its revolution period around Earth. Which of these observations supports the statement?

Every day the moon rises nearly an hour later than it did the previous day. What is the reason for this?

The shadow of a tower is always directed toward the North at midday, as shown in the given figure. Where is the tower located?

For approximately what period of time does the Moon stay in the sky a week after the full-moon day?

A solar flare is observed on Earth

Our solar system is said to be a Heliocentric model. What is at the center of our solar system?

How is the Sun similar to the stars that can be seen at night?