Our Solar System

Flashcards covering the history of astronomy, the characteristics of terrestrial and Jovian planets, solar features, and orbiting celestial bodies like comets and asteroids.

Solar System

An astronomical arrangement of planets orbiting around a central star.

Geocentric Model

An early idea where the Earth is at the center of the universe and all celestial bodies revolve around it.

Ptolemy

An astronomer and mathematician who lived in Alexandria from $100 - 170$ AD and notably described the Geocentric Model.

Heliocentric Model

A theory of the universe proposed in the $1500$'s that places the Sun at the center.

Nicolaus Copernicus

The scientist credited with first theorizing that the universe and solar system revolve around the Sun; he lived in Poland from $1473 - 1543$.

Galileo

The astronomer credited with inventing the telescope for astronomical study and discovering craters on the moon, phases of Venus, and moons of Jupiter.

Edwin Hubble

An American astronomer who discovered in $1920$ that there were other galaxies beyond our own.

Terrestrial Planets

The four inner, earth-like planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars) that are relatively solid, rocky, and smaller than the outer planets.

Jovian Planets

The four outer, Jupiter-like planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune) that are relatively gaseous and much larger than the inner planets.

Rotation

A term referring to a planet's day, based on its spin on its axis.

Revolution

A term referring to a planet's year, based on its orbit around the Sun.

Eccentricity

A measure of how elliptical an orbit is, calculated by dividing the distance between foci by the major axis.

Mercury

The closest planet to the Sun; it has no atmosphere and is similar to Earth's moon.

Venus

The second planet from the Sun and the hottest in the solar system due to a thick atmosphere of greenhouse gases; often called Earth's twin.

Earth

The third planet from the Sun, known as the 'Blue Planet' and the only one with liquid water.

Mars

The fourth planet from the Sun, known as 'the Red Planet,' featuring polar regions and seasons similar to Earth.

Great Red Spot

A perpetual storm on Jupiter that is wider than the Earth.

Saturn

A Jovian planet known for its thousands of distinctive rings made of ice and rock.

Uranus

The first planet discovered using a telescope; it is considered an ice giant and rotates vertically.

Neptune

The furthest planet from the Sun, featuring a storm called the Great Dark Spot.

Red Giant

A mature star that has grown in size as it aged.

Supernova

A process where a large star 'dies' by imploding on itself.

Nuclear Fusion

The process by which stars generate energy by squeezing two hydrogen atoms together to form one atom of helium.

Photosphere

The lowest layer of the Sun's exterior where energy is released as light.

Chromosphere

The middle layer of the Sun's exterior that gives the star its color.

Corona

The outermost layer of the Sun, appearing as a white halo or crown, and visible only during a total solar eclipse.

Sunspots

Temporary dark areas in the photosphere caused by high magnetic activity that cools the area.

Solar Flares

Quick explosions of intense energy due to fluctuations in the Sun's magnetic field.

Solar Prominences

Loops of plasma extending many kilometers into space that can last for months.

Solar Wind

Superheated charged particles that leave the Sun's corona and travel throughout space.

Comets

Loose collections of ice, dust, and small rocky particles with very long and narrow elliptical orbits.

Asteroid Belt

The largest collection of asteroids in our solar system, located between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.

Meteoroids

Asteroids that have entered the Earth's atmosphere; they often burn up as 'shooting stars'.

Dwarf Planets

Objects like Pluto that orbit the Sun and are relatively round but have not cleared their pathway.