Vocabulary Week 3-4 Sustaining Life

Asteroids a small, rocky object that orbits the sun, usually in the belt between  Mars and Jupiter

Atmosphere a layer of air, made up of many layers and gases that surround the Earth’s  surface keeping humans safe from the sun’s radiation

Galaxy a large group of stars, dust, and gas.

Halley’s Comet A comet seen about every 76 years.

Lightyear unit of length equal to the distance that light travels in one(1)year

Nebula large clouds of gas and dust

Satellite a natural or man made object that orbits a planet

Solar system The sun and all the planets , satellites , and comets that revolve around the sun.

Torino Scale a system that rates the hazard level of an object moving towards Earth

Comets a small body of ice, rock and cosmic dust that follows an elliptical orbit around the sun

Meteorite a meteoroid becomes a meteorite when it strikes the surface of a body

meteoroids Is in outer space. Once it enters a planet's atmosphere, it becomes a meteor.

Moons Any planet's natural satellite.

Planets Any of the celestial bodies (other than comets or satellites) that revolve around the sun in the solar system.  

Radiation Thermal energy that travels in waves and can pass through empty space as well as some objects.

Space The unlimited 3-dimensional expanse in which everything is located.

Sun primary source of heat and energy for the entire Solar System

Meteors A streak of light in the sky at night that results when a meteoroid hits the earth's atmosphere and air friction causes the meteoroid to melt or vaporize or explode.