Chapter 16 Flashcards
Planet
a large, ball-shaped body of matter that revolves or travels around any star.
Solar System
the sun, eight planets and their moons, dwarf planets and other objects that revolve around the sun.
Orbit
the path of any object in space that revolves around another object in space
Asteroid
a small chunk of rock that orbits around the Sun
What are meteoroids?
Meteoroids are bits of rock and metal passing through our solar system
What are comets?
Chunks of ROCK, DUST and ICE
What is the streak of light called that meteoroids make in the sky?
a METEOR
What are the names of the eight planets?
Saturn Uranus Neptune Jupiter Earth Mars Mercury Venus
What keeps the solar system stay together?
The Suns’ GRAVITY keeps the solar system together
Name 2 objects int he solar system
Comets and Meteoroids
Why is Mercury so hot and Neptune is almost frozen?
Mercury is so hot because it is so close to the sun.
Neptune is cold because it is so far away from the sun.
What planet is the smallest planet?
Mercury
How many Earth days Does it take for Mercury to orbit the sun?
88 Earth days
What is Venus covered with ?
Venues is covered with huge volcanos that spew poisonous gases
Why can people and animals survive on Earth?
Because Earth is not too hot or too cold, has a lot of liquid water and has atmosphere (oxygen and carbon dioxide) that living things need.
How do scientists think Earth’s moon may have been created?
It was created by chunks of rocks broken off and pulled together to form the moon.
What are 3 things scientists thought the surface of Mars had on it at one time?
Rivers
Lakes
Oceans
What does the surface of Mars look like now?
a dry desert
What are the names of the 4 outer planets?
Jupiter
Uranus
Neptune
Saturn
What is the Great Red Spot in Jupiter?
a large storm
Uranus doesn’t rotate like other planets, what does it do?
it spins on its side.
What new category was Pluto put in?
PLUTO
Dwarf planet category.
Pluto is a small, ball-shaped object that orbits the Sun.
Pluto is the only outer planet that is not made of gas.
What 2 things have helped us explore the Solar System?
Telescopes and Spacecrafts
What do telescopes have and what do they do?
they have glass lenses and mirrors
What planet is the only planet that has animals on it?
EARTH
What are robots doing on Mars?
They are testing soil to look for evidence of past life.
Why is the sun so bright and hot?
The sun is made of hot burning gases.
Energy is released from the Sun by gas particles that have positive charge collide and join. This energy moves in all directions and hits Earth as SUNLIGHT
What are the 4 inner planets?
Mercury
Venus
Earth
Mars
In what ways are Jupiter and Saturn alike?
They are both outer planets. Made of mostly gas. GAS GIANTS They have RINGS Surfaces are not solid. They have deep atmospheres with think layers of clouds and strong winds.
Why is Mars called the “red planet”?
It has a reddish-orange surface.
