Space science

1.  Terminator

1. = the twilight zone, the line between day and night

1. Daytime

1. = when the Earth is lit by the sun. 

1.  Summer

1. = Daytime is longer (14.5 hours in atlanta), and solar noon is higher in the sky

1. Winter

1. = Daytime is shorter (9.5 hours in Atlanta), and solar noon is lower in the sky

1.  -In the Northern Hemisphere (top half of the globe), summer is in June. In the Southern Hemisphere, summer is in December. 

1.  horizon

1. = where the land/sea meets the sky, the farthest you can see bc the curve of earth

1. solar noon

1. = when sun is at its highest point in the sky (NOT 12pm)

1.  Rotation

1. = a celestial body spinning on its axis. It takes 24 hours for Earth to rotate on its axis one time. 

1. Revolution

1. = a celestial body moving around another celestial body

1. Orbit

1. =  the path a celestial body moving around another celestial body. It takes Earth 365.25 days to revolve around the Sun.

 Constellation

=A group of stars in specific patterns, such as Orion, are called constellations.

1. Polaris

1. = north star. Directly above the magnetic north pole. In the sky, other stars seem to circle polaris.

Phase 

= As the moon orbits Earth, the shadows change how the moon looks. There are 8 moon phases.

1. Waxing 

1. = phases of the moon where the sunlit part is getting bigger

1. Waning

1. = phase of the moon where the sunlit part is getting smaller

Eclipse 

= when one celestial body casts a shadow on another.

Total solar eclipse

= when the moon completely blocks the sun during the day, can only be viewed from the umbra. Occurs appx 2 times a year in various places across the planet. The next one in the USA will be April 8, 2024

1. Annular eclipse

1. = when the moon is aligned between the sun and Earth, but the moon has moved too far away from Earth to completely block out the Sun.  

Partial solar eclipse

= when only part of the sun is blocked by the moon.

1. lunar eclipse

1. = when the Earth blocks the light from the sun, so the moon is in the umbra

 Umbra

= darkest part of the shadow

Penumbra

= lighter part of the shadow

1. Moon

1. = orbits the Earth. Is 400 times smaller than the Sun, and also 400 times farther away (that is why a total solar eclipse is possible). 

1. Waxing Crescent

1. – A thin sliver of the moon becomes visible and continues to grow.

1. First Quarter

1. – From Earth’s Northern Hemisphere, the right half of the moon appears fully lit.

1. Waxing Gibbous

   1.  

1. – The sunlit fraction of the moon that is visible from Earth continues to grow.

Full Moon

– Earth is between the moon and the sun. The entire sunlit fraction of the moon is visible from Earth.

1.  Waning Gibbous

1. – The sunlit fraction of the moon that is visible from Earth decreases.

Third Quarter

– From Earth’s Northern Hemisphere, the left half of the moon appears fully lit.

1. Waning Crescent

1. – A thin sliver of the moon becomes visible and continues to shrink.

Tidally Locked

– The time the moon takes to spin around its axis and the time it takes to orbit the Earth is the same, making it so that we can only see one side of the moon at all times

Seasons

- one of the four periods of the year when climates change (spring, summer, autumn, and winter)

Star

– a massive self-luminous body of gas held together by gravity

Northern Hemisphere

- The half of Earth that is to the north of the equator

1. Southern Hemisphere

1. - The half of Earth that is to the south of the equator

1. Season:

1. a division of the year that is associated with particular weather patterns and daylight hours.

1. Weather:

1. conditions and daily temperatures at any location on Earth follow a predictable cycle throughout the year.

1. Spring:

1. In Northern Hemisphere, spring begins In March. The sun moves higher across the sky and the number of daylight hours increases. Temperatures gradually rise.

1. Summer:

1. Summer is the warmest season, beginning in June in the Northern Hemisphere. The sun is in the sky for a greater part of the day. Daytime is longer (14.5 hours in atlanta), and solar noon is higher in the sky

1. Winter:

1. In December, the Northern Hemisphere begins its coldest season-winter. Freezing temperatures and snowfall are associated with winter months. The sun sets early in the day. Daytime is shorter (9.5 hours in Atlanta), and solar noon is lower in the sky

Fall:

Fall begins in September in the Northern Hemisphere. The number of daylight hours decreases as the sun's path across the sky moves lower. Temperatures are gradually cool

Equinox-

A day where there are an equal number of hours in a day and night at all locations of the earth

1. Earths Tilt

1. - Due to this axial tilt, the sun shines on different latitudes at different angles throughout the year. This causes the seasons.

Latitude

= horizontal lines on globe. 0° = equator, 30° = Tropic of Cancer (N) and Capricorn (S), 60° = Arctic (N) and Antarctic (S) Circles, 90°=poles,

Longitude

= vertical lines on the globe.

Summer Solstice

= June 21 in the Northern Hemisphere, the longest day of the year

Winter Solstice

= Dec 21 in the Northern Hemisphere, the shortest day of the year

Fall Equinox

= September 21. Number of daylight hours is the same as nighttime hours.

Spring Equinox

= March 21.  Number of daylight hours is the same as nighttime hours.

Terrestrial planets

= the inner, smaller planets, made up of rock and metals. Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars

Ice Giants

= Uranus and Neptune. It is so cold, the gasses have formed ice.

Solar System

= our solar system is 4.6 billion years old. It held together by gravity, and includes an average sized star, orbited by 8 planets and their moons, asteroids, comets, meteors, ect

Gravity

= the force of attraction between two objects. The more mass a planet has, the more gravity it will have.

Nebula

= a cloud of gas and dust in space

Solar Nebula

= the cloud of gas and dust that became our solar system. The shockwave of a supernova explosion caused the solar nebula to spin faster and collapse into a Protoplanetary disk.

Protoplanetary Disk

= A flattened disk of dust and gasses that swirl around a protostar (baby sun).

1. Nebular Hypothesis

1. = How the solar system formed

   1. The solar nebula was hit with a shockwave from a supernova (star explosion), causing the solar nebula to spin really fast. 

   2. The solar nebula collapsed into a protoplanetary disk.

   3. Protoplanets formed as chunks of rock and metal that accreted (through gravity) more mass.

   4. The planets continue to gain mass and gravity as they clear their orbits. 

   5. The solar system as we know it today, with one sun and eight planets.