Solar System

7th Grade Science S May

Gravity-force attracting objects toward each other The greater the mass the greater the gravitational pull The farther away the objects are from each other the less the pull The closer the objects are to each other the more the pull

Sphere-3 dimensional object whose surface at all points is the same distance from its center Earth is spherical in shape Axis is the imaginary line from the North to the South geographical poles

Earth is tilted on its axis at 23.5 degrees Rotation is the spinning of Earth on its axis. Rotation gives us day and night Rotation occurs during the 24 hour period

Revolution is the path the earth takes around the sun Earths orbit is elliptical It takes the Earth 365 days to make one trip around the sun Because of Earths TILT and REVOLUTION we have seasons

We are located in the Northern Hemisphere The amount of solar radiation that reaches or hits Earth is dependent on the angles of the rays of the sun that hit the equator.

The hemisphere that is tilted towards the sun gets more sun rays and at a higher angle which means more solar radiation and higher temperatures The hemisphere that is tilted away from the sun gets less sun rays and at a lower angle and has less solar radiation and lower temperatures.

In the winter months, Northern Hemisphere is actually closer in miles to the sun but tilted farther away (colder temperatures) IN the summer months, Northern Hemisphere is actually farther n miles to the sun but tilted towards the sun (warmer temperatures)

Two times per year, the sun reaches its greatest distance north or south of the equator Summer solstice= sun high in the sky and it is hot. Occurs June 21 or June 22 for the Northern Hemisphere We are farther in distance from the sun but tilted towards the sun

Summer solstice=over the tropic of cancer

Winter Solstice=sun is low at noon Temperatures are cold Occurs Dec 21 or Dec 22 The Northern Hemisphere is tilted away from the sun but is closer in distance Tropic of Capricorn

Equinox=sun is directly above the Earths equator Equal day and night all over Spring equinox occurs March 21 or March 22 also called vernal equinox Fall or Autumnal equinox occurs Sept 21 or Sept 22

Maria is the dark areas on the moon which occurs from lava flowing Craters are depressions formed from meteorites supposedly striking Highlands are lighter colored spots on the moon

Same side of the moon is always facing the earth BECAUSE the moons revolution and rotation are equal The moon takes 27.3-30 days for 1 orbit AROUND the Earth and the rotation is the same The moon appears to light up due to the reflection of the sun

Moon phases=different portions of the light moon are visible Moon doesnt change shape, it remains spherical The changing shape has to do with the shadow cast by earth and blocking the amount of sun reflecting the moon

New moon=position is earth moon and sun aligned up Moon is between the sun and the earth Cannot see any of the moon, it is dark and the lighted half is facing the sun and we cannot see it

Waxing moon means growing in size Occurs after a new moon Phase 2 is waxing crescent the right side of the moon is visible

3rd phase would be 1st quarter-half the moon shows up and its the right half 4th phase would be waxing gibbous-3/4 of the moon shows up 5th phase would be full moon-the entire moon is visible in the night sky 6th phase would be Gibbous waning of the left side shows up (it is trying to be new again)

7th phase would be third quarter-1/2 of the left side shows up 8th phase would be crescent waningthin sliver of the left side of the moon shows up Use the diagram we completed from the board

Waxing is growing in size Waning is getting smaller in size A full moon to new moon takes 14 days A new moon to a full moon takes 14 days

Moon phases take about 29.5 days to occur

Moon Phases

Moon Calendar

Eclipses-way shadows are cast

Solar eclipse-moon blocks the sun from reaching Earths surface SME Sun---moon---Earth Umbra-smallest shadow that is case during an eclipse Penumbra-the largest shadow that is cast during an eclipse

Eclipses--Solar

Lunar eclipse-direct sun is blocked from the moon Alignment is MES Moon---Earth---sun

Luncar Eclipses

Earth is 1 AU or 1 astronomical unit from the sun 1AU= 93 million miles To convert from km to miles Multiply the km by .6211 To convert from miles to km Multiple the miles by 1.6093

Suna star located at the center of the solar system A large ball of gas Produces energy by fusing hydrogen into helium 99% of matter is contained here Is a medium sized star

Planets Inner planets are called terrestrial because they contain a rocky core Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars

Mercuryclosest to the sun Has cliffs No atmosphere Hot days Cold nights 36 million miles from sun Revolution is 88 days Rotation is 4223 hours Temperature is 333 degrees Fahrenheit

Venus Earths twinsize/mass Greenhouse effect Clouds thick with sulfuric acid 67 million miles from sun Revolution 225 days Rotation 2802 hours Temperature 867 degrees Fahrenheit

Earth-water in all three states of matter Has ozone layer 1au from sun or 93 million miles Revolution 365 Rotation 24 hours Temperature 60 degrees Fahrenheit 1 moon 8 minutes for sun light to travel to Earth

Mars also called the red planet Iron oxide (rust) Largest volcano Olympus mons Polar ice caps Thin atmosphere of co2, nitrogen, argon Revolution 687 days 1.9 years Rotation 25 hours Temperature 85 degrees(that is minus 85 Degrees Fahrenheit 142 million miles from sun

Mars has 2 polar ice caps 2 moons phobos and deimos

Outer planets Begins with Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune Asteroid belt separates inner planets from outer planets

Jupiter Largest planet Storm on the surface called the great red spot Atmosphere made of hydrogen & helium 63 moons (Io and Europa) 484 million miles Revolution 4331 days (12 years) Rotation 10 hours Temperature 166 degrees Fahrenheit (minus

Saturn Atmosphere is hydrogen and helium Ringed planet Rings are made of ice and rock 47 moons (titan is largest) 891 million miles Revolution 10,747 days or 29 years Rotation 11 hours Temperature 220 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 220)

Uranus Atmosphere is made of hydrogen, helium, methane Blue green color is related to methane Blue is reflected and red is absorbed 27 moons 1785 million miles from sun Revolution 30, 589 days (83 years) Rotation 17 hours Temperature 320 degrees (minus 320 )

Neptune Atmosphere is hydrogen, helium, and methane Methane gives a bluish color Winds are about 2400 kmph or 1488 miles per hour 2793 million miles from sun Revolution is 59,800 days or 163 years Rotation is 16 hours Temperature is 330 degrees Fahrenheit

Pluto Dwarf planet Largest moon is charon and 2 smaller moons hydra and nix Rocky core

Dwarf planets Ceres is the smallest located at the asteroid belt Eris is an icy object with an orbit that is elliptical

Asteroids Small rocky objects that lie between Mars and Jupiter Asteroid belt is what separates the inner and outer planets

Comets Made mainly of rocky particles and water and ice As the comets approach the sun they vaporize and form tails The tails get longer as they come closer to the sun

Comets are located in the Kuiper Belt and Oort Cloud Kuiper belt is beyond Neptunes belt Oort Cloud located far beyond Plutos orbit Meteroids form when comets and asteroids break apart Meteors when meteoroids enter Earths atmosphere Meteorites when meteors fall to Earth Nebula-cloud of material rotating slowly in space

Your Weight on Other Worlds

Your Age on Other Worlds | Exploratorium

Interactive Solar System

Interactive Solar System

Planet Info

Planet Research

Planets How planets got their names

Moon phases

Moon Phases

Space Games ONLINE

Space Games Online

Astronomy Calendar of Events

Astronomy Calendar of Events

Moon Phases

Moon Phases