The Solar System Flashcards
What does a solar system consist of?
A star and the objects orbiting it
(Planets, moons, dwarf planets, asteroids, and comets)
What does the Solar System look like?
Sun at the centre, planets orbit the sun, moons orbit the planets.
What is the asteroid belt
A region between Mars and Jupiter with thousands of rocky asteroids and dwarf planets
What is a dwarf planet?
Similar to a planet, but too small to be one
What is a comet?
It’s a body made of ice and dust beyond the orbit of Neptune with an elliptical orbit
What are planets of the Solar System?
(Ordered)
Mercury
Venus
Earth
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
Uranus
Neptune
What are the small, rocky inner planets?
Mercury
Venus
Earth
Mars
What are the large, gaseous, inner planets?
Jupiter
Saturn
Uranus
Neptune
What is the pattern orbit time in the planets?
Further from the sun = Longer time to complete an orbit
What is the pattern in temperature in the planets?
Distance from sun increases = temperature decreases
Except for Venus
Why is Venus so hot?
Because of it’s thick atmosphere
What’s the relationship between planet type and moons?
Gas planets = more moons
What is an astronomical unit?
The mean distance between the sun and earth
~1.5*10^8km
What is a light year?
The distance light travels in a year
How was the solar system formed?
Formed from hydrogen, helium, and dust ejected from supernovas.
Gravitational forces caused the cloud the collapse, and the particles to collect together.
As the cloud collapsed, it started to spin, becoming disk-shaped.
The centre became the sun and the rest became planets
