Complete List of Terms and Definitions for Astronomy Vocabulary 5

Terms Definitions
Declination Latitude
universe includes everything
december 21 winter solstice
sun spots cooler gases
differentiation earth layered the most
luminosity Brightness of a star
emission light that is emitted
Venus, Uranus Which planets spin CLOCKWISE?
fastest rotation jupiter, larger mass &gravity
Neptune Which planet has 13 moons?
Absolute zero is _________. 0 Kelvin
sirius the brightest star in the sky
Density moon is less dense than Earth
inner planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars
molecule two or more atoms bonded together.
Azimuth Measurement in degrees along the horizon from the north point eastward.
Zenith the highest point in the sky.
false TF the Miller-Urey experiment relied on special conditions found only on Earth
Motion an object's change in position relative to a reference point
globular cluster a comparatively older, spherically symmetrical, compact group of up to a million old stars, held together by mutual gravitation, that are located in the galactic halo and move in giant and highly eccentric orbits around the galactic center.
terminator the dividing line between the light and dark part of a planetary body.
James Maxwell electric and magnetic fields make waves in light; electromagnetic waves or electromagnetic radiation
If Hubble's constant were larger, the age of the universe we inger would be.... Younger
diameter of lens What determines the light-gathering power of a telescope?
calender a system of organizing time that defines the beginning, length, and divisions of a year
Spiral Arms These large structures give galaxies like ours their characteristic pinwheel shape.
Revolution The Movement of an object around another object
Seasons are caused by the tilt, revoluiton, and the rotation of the earth
how do we study moon's interior? seismic waves
Mars 4th planet- rusty surface with solid CO2 polar caps, possible permi frost water layer and previous life?- has highest mountain and biggest valley in SS
orbit a balance between escape velocity ( speed) and gravitational force allowing a body or object to move around and remain above above another body
equator where the Earth's circumference is the greatest
interstellar dust Microscopic solid grains in the interstellar medium. (p. 174)
selectivity the state or quality of being selective.
quasar a galaxy which center is so bright that it obscures the outer regions
Occams Razor the idea that scientists should prefer the simpler of two models that agree equally well with observations
Which minor planet is also known as Hades? Pluto
Protoplanetary Disk A rotating circumstellar disk of dense gas surrounding a young newly formed star. It is thought that planets are eventually formed from the gas and dust within the protoplanetary disk.
Dark matter causes stars in the outer part of the galaxy to orbit... Faster
5.2 AU Trojan asteroids orbit the Sun at average distance of
Rotation earth rotates around its axis once a day
gibbous (used of the moon) more than half full
Geocentric Model where the Sun, planets and stars revolve around the Earth
Pluto Dwarf planet that is the farthest from the Sun and revolves in an egg-shaped orbit
Sir Isaac Newton concluded that inertia and gravity combine to keep the planets in orbit
Uranus 7th planet, tipped on its side, faint rings
neutron star the small, dense remains of a high-mass star after a supernova
Light-year the distance that light travels in one year, about 9.5 million million kilometers
element a substance that cannot be broken down into a simpler chemical substance
Stellar Nucleosynthesis The production of new elements by nuclear reactions in the core of evolved stars
-All elements heavier than helium are formed here
Who discovered that most of the universe is hydrogen? Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin
constellation any of various groups of stars to which definite names have been given and the section of the heavens occupied by such a group, such as Ursa Major, Andromeda
Starfish Prime test when the US detonated a nuclear bomb in the sky just to see what would happen
Standard Time zones 24 zones of 15° longitude which divide the time of day on earth into 24 hours, when you travel west you gain time, when you travel east you lose time
Cepheid period-lum relation Using the apparent brightness of the Cepheid variable star to estimate the distance of one galaxy from another.
appearance of Jupiter striped from ammonia compounds in the atmosphere
how large was the meteor that caused the barringer crater 10 yards
black hole An object whose gravity is so strong that the escape velocity from it exceeds the speed of light.
light year the distance that light travels in the year
Prominence A loop of gas that protrudes from the sun's surface, linking parts of sunspot regions
Newton's law of motion three statements, formulated by Isaac newton, that applies to all forces and bodies
astronomy The study of the moon, stars and other objects in space
How did Copernicus account for retrograde motion? Used Aristarchus's retrograde model.
If your mass is 60kg on earth, what would be you mass on the moon 60kg
detector a device used to measure light once it has been brought into focus by a telescope
Milky Way The hazy band of light that circles our sky. Produced by the glow of our galaxy. (p. 8)
List some of the similarities and differences between Jupiter's belts, zones, spots, and weather systems on Earth: Similarities: convection, cloud rotation, Great Red Spot is reminiscent of the way a hurricane operates on Earth. Differences: density of the atmosphere, Earth lacks a zonal flow, Jupiter does not have a solid surface.
planetary Ring dust and small particle of ice and or metal/rock that orbit the gas giants in a flat disc shaped area
Diurnal motion things move at 15 degrees an hour from East to West
planetary rings a disc of dust and gas created when small moons collided with others, or ventured too close to their parent planet.
solar nebula The large cloud of gas and dust from which the Sun and planets condensed 4.6 billion years ago.
spiral galaxy a galaxy with a bulge in the middle and arms that spiral outward in a pinwheel pattern
30 years time it take Saturn to orbit the Sun once
speed of light distance light can travel in unit of time through given substance
name the two types of telescope defects chromatic aberration and spherical aberration
temperature of stars analyze light from the star we can get the temperature
what happened to venus' water ultraviolet light from the sun broke apart water molecules
First 4 Asteroids to be discovered -Ceres (first discovered. largest, but would fit in TX.)
-Pallas
-Juno
-Vesta

Founded in 1807 by Gillseppe Piazzi and Georg Bessell

Got their names by Herschel.
Name the 4 time zones (in order east to west) in the contiental United States Eastern, Central, Pacific, Mountain
A full moon occurs... when the earth is in between the moon and the sun
43. What type of geometry says that parallel lines stay parallel? Flat or Euclidean geometry (real)
When an object is close it looks bigger (has a large apparent diameter) (farther = smaller)
Orion is visible on winter evenings but not summer evenings because of the location of Earth in its orbit.
What is Newton's version of Kepler's Third Law? Orbital period depends on distance and the masses of the orbiting bodies.
How the galaxy appears from Earth 1. We see many stars per cubic light year along the plane of the galaxy
2. in the plane we see so many stars that the light blends to form one continous band
3. we see fewer stars per cubic light year at right angles to the plane
What causes the change of the constellations with the seasons? It is cause by the Earth's motion around the sun.
How does latitude affect the amount of day light they receied throughout the years? Closer to the equator sun rises higher in the sky = more light
We know that giant stars are larger in diameter than the sun because they are more luminous but have about the same temperature