Study Guide (Science) Flashcards
Moons
Bodies that orbit larger bodies such as planets, dwarf planets, or asteroids, not the sun. They don’t have to be round.
Dwarf Planets
A small planet they are similar to planet, they are big enough the be a round ball the orbit the sun and they are not cleared. (there is debris in its orbit.)
Comets
Small bodies of ice, rock, and dust. They follow highly elliptical orbits around the sun. When the get near the sun they seem to have a head and a tail.
Asteroids
Small irregularly shaped rocky and metallic bodies. They don’t enter earth’s atmosphere. But they could collide into a planet.
Meteoroids/Meteors
(Common name: shooting stars) Small rocky metallic bodies. When they enter earth’s atmosphere, it burns up. The short, bright streak of light is called a meteor.
What is a parallax? How does it affect what astronomers see?
A parallax is the apparent shift in position of an object when it’s viewed from different points. It affected astronomers because when it was far away the stars were either far away or they are non-moving.
Explain the heliocentric model of the solar system.
It puts each planet including Earth, in orbit around the sun. ( Sun centered) The moon included (Copernicus) The stars were orbiting, the outer planet weren’t in the model.
Explain the geocentric model of the solar system.
It uses epicycles to explain retrograde motion. (Ptolemy)
Describe Aristotle’s model of the solar system.
The planets, sun, moon, and stars revoled around a fixed, non-moving earth. (Earth is in the middle where the sun usually is)
What is retrograde motion? How did retrograde motion impact the thinking of astronomers?
It’s when planets seem to move backwards or have a looping path if viewed from Earth over several weeks.
What contributions did Ptolemy make to astronomy?
Ptolemy explained retrograde motion. He explained how the planets moved in small circles (epicycles) around their orbits around Earth.
Describe Copernicus’s model of the solar system.
Copernicus’s model is sun centered and describes retrograde in a more simpler way. (heliocentric)
Describe the contributions of Brahe and Kepler to astronomy.
-Brahe made instruments that allowed him to make extremely precise measurements of stars.
-Kepler used Brahe’s data to calculate shapes of planetary orbits. He said the planets have epicycles.
(Copernicus)
Describe the contributions of Galileo to astronomy.
He made the first telescope. It collects and concentrates light from distant objects to make them look bigger. He discovered sun spots and moon craters. He was the first scientist to find the Milky Way
How did early astronomers explain the movement of constellations? How do astronomers today explain the motion?
The early astronomers said they moved in patterns. Astronomers today say they move from east to west like the sun and the moon do.
