2026- Earth and Space Science Mid-Topic

Celestial Object

A natural object that exists out of Earth’s atmosphere.

Star

A natural luminous body visible in the night sky, that emits light and heat.

Constellation

A group of stars in the night sky, often given a name based on what shape they look like.

Planet

 A large spherical object that is in motion in fixed orbits around a star, and meets 3 specific criteria.

Satellite

An object that orbits another celestial object, that can be natural or man made.

Comet

A chunk of ice, rock, and dust that orbits the Sun, releasing gas as it does and forming a tail.

Galaxy

Large groups of stars that are held together by gravity.

Asteroid

A small rocky body made of metal or minerals, that orbits the Sun. Mostly found in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

Meteoroid

A small piece of rock or metal that orbits our Sun, usually coming from a comet or from pieces of an asteroid.

Meteor

A meteoroid that enters Earth’s atmosphere, that are usually small and burn up (this is why they are also known as a “shooting stars”).

Meteorite

A piece of meteor that reaches Earth’s surface.

Order of the Planets

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune.

3 Criteria to be a Planet

Directly orbit a Sun, have enough mass so its gravity can force it into a spherical shape, have a large enough gravity to clear away objects of a similar and smaller size from its orbit.

4 Inner Planets

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars.

4 Outer Planets

Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune.

The 8 Moon Phases

New Moon, Waxing Cresent Moon, First Quarter Moon, Waxing Gibbous Moon, Full Moon, Waning Gibbous Moon, Third Quarter Moon, Waning Cresent Moon.

Disadvantages of my Eclipse Model

It is not accurately to scale, and the Moon’s orbit is inaccurately a perfect circle, and not angled.

Advantages of my Eclipse Model

How simple and quick it is to make, and it helps you visualise lunar and solar eclipses.

Improvements to my Eclipse Model

Make the Moon’s orbit angled and not perfectly circular, and make the model to scale.

Umbra

The darkest part of a shadow, where all the light is blocked

Penumbra

The lighter part of a shadow, where only some of the light is blocked

Solar Eclipse Positions

Sun, Moon, Earth

Lunar Eclipse Positions

Sun, Earth, Moon

What happens during a solar eclipse?

When the Moon’s shadow falls on Earth.

What happens during a lunar eclipse?

The Earth’s shadow falls on the Moon.

How does day and night occur?

The side of Earth facing the Sun is going through daytime, and the side facing away is going through night-time.

Which way and why does the Sun rise?

It rises in the East and sets in the West, because Earth spins West to East.

How much is Earth’s orbit angled by?

23.5 degrees.

How much is the Moon’s orbit angled by (compared to Earth’s)?

5 degrees.