Astronomy Notes Pages 12-17

Astronomy

The study of celestial bodies, space, and the universe as a whole.

Astronomer

A person who studies astronomy.

Telescope

A tool used to observe distant celestial objects by collecting and magnifying light.

Spectroscope

An instrument used to analyze the light spectrum from stars and other celestial bodies.

Galaxy

A massive system of stars, stellar remnants, interstellar gas, dust, and dark matter bound together by gravity.

Milky Way Galaxy

The galaxy that contains our Solar System, characterized by its spiral shape.

Constellation

A group of stars forming a recognizable pattern, often named after mythological figures or animals.

Light-year

The distance that light travels in one year, commonly used to measure astronomical distances.

Nova

An event where a star suddenly increases in brightness before fading, indicating a change in its physical state.

Hydrogen and Helium

The two most abundant elements found in stars.

Planet

A celestial body that orbits a star and is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity.

Exoplanet

A planet that orbits a star outside our Solar System.

Asteroid

A small rocky body that orbits the Sun, mainly found in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

Comet

A small icy body that releases gas or dust and often has a tail when near the Sun.

Black Hole

A region of space where gravity is so strong that nothing, not even light, can escape from it.

Nebula

A giant cloud of gas and dust in space, often the birthplace of stars.

Supernova

A powerful explosion of a star at the end of its life cycle, often expanding to form a nebula.

Satellite

A celestial body that orbits another body in space, such as a moon or an artificial satellite.

Redshift

The phenomenon where light from an object is increased in wavelength, indicating it is moving away from the observer.

Quasar

An extremely bright and distant object powered by a supermassive black hole, emitting large amounts of energy.

What is a Star?

A massive, luminous celestial body made of plasma, undergoing nuclear fusion.

What is a Solar System?

A collection of celestial bodies, including planets, moons, asteroids, and comets, orbiting a star.

What is a Light Year?

The distance that light travels in one year, approximately 5.88 trillion miles.

What is the Universe?

All of space and time, including all matter, energy, planets, stars, galaxies, and the contents of intergalactic space.

What is a Red Giant?

A large, luminous star in a late stage of its evolution, characterized by its reddish color.

What is the Hubble Space Telescope?

A large space telescope that provides high-resolution images of space.

What is Dark Matter?

A form of matter that does not emit light and is not directly observable but influences the universe's structure.

What is a Pulsar?

A highly magnetized, rotating neutron star that emits beams of electromagnetic radiation.

What is a White Dwarf?

The remnant core of a star that has exhausted its nuclear fuel and shed its outer layers.

What is the Big Bang Theory?

The leading explanation for the origin of the universe, proposing it began as a singularity that expanded.