31.1 & 31.2 13 words flashcards

Question 1

constellation

Answer 1

star pattern that appears to form images

Question 2

radio telescope

Answer 2

telescope that collects and magnifies radio waves

Question 3

light-year

Answer 3

distance that light travels in one year - about 9.5 trillion kilometers

Question 4

spectroscope

Answer 4

device that disperses light into its component wavelengths, using a prism or diffraction grating

Question 5

nebula

Answer 5

interstellar cloud of gas, ice and dust

Question 6

main sequence

Answer 6

section of the H-R diagram that is plotted from the upper left to the lower right & contains 90% of all known stars

Question 7

giant star

Answer 7

late stage in a star’s life cycle that occurs when its hydrogen fuel is depleted, its core contracts, and its outer layers expand and cool

Question 8

white dwarf

Answer 8

giant star that has lost its outer layers, leaving behind a hot, dense core that continues to contract under gravity

Question 9

supernova

Answer 9

giant explosion of a star in which the temperature within the collapsing star reaches 10 billion K, can evolve into a neutron star

Question 10

neutron star

Answer 10

produced by a collapsing star when protons and electrons in the star’s core collide to form neutrons

Question 11

black hole

Answer 11

a region in space that is so dense that nothing can escape its inward pull of gravity

Question 12

photosphere

Answer 12

layer of the sun that emits light into space

Question 13

sunspots

Answer 13

darker, cooler areas of the sun’s photosphere