Solar System

What is the Solar System? Consists of a star, (like the sun) and all of the planets, moons and other bodies that travel around it. Planets and how they Orbit Orbit is the path one object in space follows around another object Orbit is the path one object in space follows around another object Gravity is the force of attraction among all space objects. Gravity is the force of attraction among all space objects. The amount of gravitational force depends on the mass of the object. The greater the mass the greater the attraction (gravity’s force) The amount of gravitational force depends on the mass of the object. The greater the mass the greater the attraction (gravity’s force) Gravity’s pull changes with distance Gravity’s pull changes with distance

Planets Inner Planets Similar sizes, with rocky structure Similar sizes, with rocky structure Rotate slow Rotate slow No rings No rings Divided from outer planets by asteroid belt Divided from outer planets by asteroid belt Outer Planets On the other side of the asteroid belt further from the sun On the other side of the asteroid belt further from the sun Similar in size, called the gas giants Similar in size, called the gas giants Larger than inner planets with a small metallic core and thick atmosphere Larger than inner planets with a small metallic core and thick atmosphere All have rings with many moons All have rings with many moons

Planets in Order ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Other Objects Comet: a ball of ice and rock that orbits the sun Meteoroids: small, rocky or metallic objects I the suns orbit. Located in the inner and outer regions Meteor: A meteoroid that enters the Earth’s Atmosphere Meteorite: A Meteoroid that hits Earth’s surface. Asteroids: Rocky or metallic objects that orbit the sun. Can be large Asteroid belt: Separates inner and outer planets.

Stars Star: A very large, hot ball of gas held together by gravity Constellation: a group of stars that appear in a pattern Light year: the distance light travels in one year. The speed at which light travels. (More than 9 trillion kilometers)

A Parallax is an apparent shift in an objects positive when viewed from two different locations.

Absolute Magnitude vs. Apparent Magnitude Absolute Magnitude: How bright the star ACTAULLY is Apparent Magnitude: How bright the star appears in the night sky on Earth.

A Star’s Life Protostars: Every star starts its life as a nebula, which is a huge cloud of dust and gas. As gravity in space cases the star to contract it becomes a protostar. Main-Sequence Stars: When the protostar reaches a certain temperature (millions of degree Celsius.) This is when nuclear reactions begin, by fusing together helium and hydrogen. The energy pushes outward against gravity and at this point its considered a main-sequence star.

A Star’s Life Red Giants and Super Giants: As the hydrogen core is used up, the star becomes cooler and the color appears redder. Instead of using hydrogen in its reactions it only uses helium Red Giant: UP TO 10 times the size of the suns mass Supergiant: greater in size than 10 times the sun’s mass

A Star’s Life FINAL STAGES (Red Giant): Nuclear reactions build up in the outer layers of the star giving off energy. The star than releases clouds of gases, this is called a planetary nebula. The layer of gases expend into space. The stars core continues to shrink. The surface temperature begins to increase, the star than becomes a white dwarf. A white dwarf is hot enough and gives off enough radiation to causing the start to glow, allowing us to see the planetary nebula. After billions of years the star finally cools off and stop emitting light. We call this a black dwarf.

A Star’s Life Final Stages (Supergiant): Use up energy at a fantastic rate, giving off a lot of energy. The star is no longer able to fuse atoms and give off energy at the same time. When the supergiant finally reaches the point where it cannot produce and give off enough energy it collapses, explodes and becomes a supernova. Most of the time a supernova becomes and remains a neutron star, which is dense and packed with particles. It rotates quickly and eventually appears to be blinking, when this happens we call this a pulsar. If the supergiant is VERY massive, instead of becoming a neutron star, the core collapses. It becomes a very tiny, yet very massive black hole. A black whole is an object who’s gravity is so strong that not even light can escape it. If the supergiant is VERY massive, instead of becoming a neutron star, the core collapses. It becomes a very tiny, yet very massive black hole. A black whole is an object who’s gravity is so strong that not even light can escape it.

R E V I E W The Earth, Sun and Solar system are all part of what galaxy? What is a galaxy? What is a light year? Name the inner planets? Name the outer planets? What causes a black whole.