Science Ch 17 Flashcards
Why is our planetary system named the solar system?
Because it revolves around the sun
What is the latin word for sun?
Sol from which the word solar comes from
Where is our Planetary system located?
It is located in the outer spiral arm of the Milky Way galaxy
What is the Solar system made up of?
The sun, eight regular planets, many dwarf planets, many moons, astroids, and comets
The earth and all the other planets follow a path called…
Called an orbit
What are the shape of orbits?
Elliptical (oval shaped)
What is a revolution?
Earth’s one full orbit around the sun
How long does it take the earth to orbit around the sun?
It takes the Earth 365 1/4 days To orbit the sun
What does 365 1/4 days equal?
1 YEAR
What are axis?
An imaginary line that runs through the center of the earth from the North Pole to the South Pole.
How does Earth spin?
By rotating on a tilted axis
What is it called when earth spins one full time around its axis?
It is called a rotation
How long does it take the earth to rotate around its axis once?
24 hours
What causes day and night?
Earths rotation
What is the north hemisphere experiencing when the earth is closest to the sun and why?
The north hemisphere is experiencing winter because the north is facing away from the sun
When the earth is farther away from the sun what is the North Hemisphere experiencing and why?
They are experiencing summer because we face the sun directly, even though we are farther away
Name the eight planets in our solar system.
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune
What do we believe the earth can do that other planets can’t do?
Believe earth is the only one that can support life
What is the distance between the planets measured in?
They are measured in astronomical units or AU
What is the distance between the earth and the sun in AU or astronomical units?
1AU which is 93,000,000 miles
What is Mercury?
Mercury is the planet closest to the sun
Small planet with metal-core
What is Venus?
Second planet from the sun
Same size as earth
The brightest planet
What is Earth?
Third planet from the sun
Mostly covered with water
Home to me and you
What is Mars?
Fourth planet from the sun
The red planet
Has a mountain on it that is twice the size of Mount Everest
What is Jupiter?
Fifth planet from the sun
Very wide
How’s the red spot on the planet which is a massive storm brewing for The last 300 years
Known as a gas giant because it is made up of gas and has no solid surfaces
What is Saturn?
The sixth planet from the sun
Has icy rings around it
Like Jupiter, Saturn is a gas giant
What is Uranus?
Seventh from the sun
Spins on its side
Also a gas giant
Mostly made up of methane gas which is what causes its blue/green color
What is Neptune?
Eighth planet from the sun
Very windy
A gas giant made up of mostly helium and hydrogen
What are space probes?
They are spacecraft launched from earth to go into space to take pictures and gather information about the planets
What was launched in 2004 and landed on which planet?
Two space probes were launched into space and landed on Mars
What has the voyager flown past and what did it gather?
The Voyager has flown past Neptune, Jupiter, and Saturn to gather information on those planets.
