Things I know Flashcards
What is a force?
A push or pull which can have an effect on an object’s speed, direction or shape
What is a Newton meter?
Instrument used for measuring forces
What is another name for a Newton meter?
A Newton balance
What is a Newton (N)
Unit of measurement for forces
What is a fluid?
A liquid or gas
What is an exoplanet?
A planet outside our own solar system
What is a planet?
A large space object is hi how is nut large enough to create its own light
What is a dwarf planet?
A large space object, however too small to be classified as a planet
What is an asteroid?
Object smaller than a dwarf planet
What is a meteoroid?
Object smaller than an asteroid
What is an Astronomical unit (AU)
Space is so vast, astronomers use AU for distances inside the solar system
What is the AU from the Earth to the Sun?
150 million
What is a light year?
The distance light travels in a year, 9.5 million billion
What is a star?
A small, red dwarf which can make its own light
What is a comet?
Small, icy object which displays bright tails when close to a star
What do bigger and heavier shapes do?
They fall slower because the create more drag
What shape is the Earth?
The Earth is a sphere
How does a year happen?
It orbits around the sun every 365.25 days
How does a leap year happen?
The extra 1/4 day
How many degrees is the Earth’s spin axis
23 degrees
How does Summer happen
The Northern Hemisphere is tilted towards the Sun, meaning days are longer because of more direct sunlight
How does Winter happen
Northern Hemisphere tilted away from the Sun, days are shorter because sunlight is coming from an angle
What imaginary line does the Earth spin round
Axis
What does the axis run through
The North to the South Pole
Why does the sun and other stars seem to move slowly?
The Earth is rotating
What does this mean?
The Sun rises in the East and sets in the West
When is the Sun at its highest point?
At Midday
When are our shadows the longest?
In the Morning and the Evening
How do the different seasons occur?
Caused by the tilt of the Earth on its axis
What day is there equal length of day and night
March 21
Where does the month come from?
Moon
How are planets attracted towards the sun?
By gravity, which is an invisible force
Any object that travels this way is called what?
A satellite
What direction does the Moon travel?
Anti-clockwise
How long does it take for the Moon to complete an orbit?
27.3 days
What happens if a satellite is given too much speed?
It will escape into space
What happens if a satellite has too little speed?
It will fall back down to Earth
What do the changing appearance of the Moon called?
Its phases
The complete cycle of 1 new moon to the next takes how many days?
- 5 days
What is the difference between these two times?
Because the Earth is also slowly changing position as it orbits the Sun
When is there a half moon?
At 7 and 21 days
When is there a full Moon?
At 14 days
The Moon has a much tinier what compared to the Earth?
Mass
What does this mean?
The pull of gravity is 6x weaker than the Earth’s
The bigger the mass of a planet means…
The bigger its gravitational force
What are the eight planets?
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
The Sun is part of a vast system called what?
The Milky Way Galaxy
What shape is it?
It is a spiral disc
In light years how thick is it?
1,000
In Light years how wide is it?
100,000
How far from the centre are we?
20,000,000 light years
How many stars does the Galaxy contain?
100-400 billion
What is the % of exoplanets that the Kepler Space telescope discover
60%
What years did the Kepler discover these exoplanets?
2009-2019
What % of the sky did Kepler look at?
0.25% to a distance of 3,000 light years
Most stars have what
A habitable zone
Are mass and weight the same thing?
No!
What is mass measured in?
KG
Does mass change if an object is moved?
Nope
How is weight measured?
In Newtons
Does weight change depending on where an object is?
Yes
What type of world is PSRB1257+12a?
A rocky world
What % of the Earth’s mass is PSRB1257+12a
2%
What fraction is it’s radius?
1/3 of Earth’s
How many light years is HR2562b away?
110
How much mass is it of Jupiter
30x the mass
What % of a larger radius is HR2562b?
10%
Where is Mars?
On the cold outer edge of the Sun’s habitable zone
What form of water does Mary’s have?
Ice and mud
