Astronomy Flashcards
Astronomy
The study of all objects beyond earth
Astronomer
Person who studies astronomy
Constellation
Group of stars that form a pattern
Parallax
Apparent change in the position of an object in the sky due to the change in the earths position as it moves around the sun
Orbit
Path an object takes while traveling in space around another object
Elliptical
Orbit- oval orbit
Gravity
Force of attraction between objects that weakens as distance increases
Law of inertia
Newtons law that states that an object in motion will not change unless acted upon by an unbalanced force
Rotation
Spin
Revolution
Something that is moving in a circle around another object such as the way the moon circles the earth it is said to revolve around object
Equator
0 degrees latitude halfway between North and South Pole
Hemisphere
Half ofthe planet the northern hemisphere has more land masses
Latitude
Measure of the distance north and south of the equator , latitude lines run east west
Longitude
Measure of the distance east and west of the prime meridian, lines run north and south
Day
Amount of the time it takes the earth to spin once on its axis, one rotation
Light year
Distance which a ray of light would travel in one year , this is about 6,000,000,000,000 miles
Solar energy
Energy from the sun
Solstice
Time of year when the day is either shortest, or longest depending on where you are
Milky Way galaxy
Our solar system is located within this galaxy contains single and double stars planets asteroids meteors and gas and dust elliptical shape
Prime meridian
0 degrees longitude, runs through Greenwich England
