1. Astronomy
Astronomy the study of the planets, stars, galaxies, and all other objects in space.
Horsehead Nebula

2. Motions of the Earth and Moon
Globe – three dimensional model of Earth
Earth’s axis is an imaginary line that runs from its North Pole, through its center, to its South Pole.
Rotation – each complete counter-clockwise spin around the axis takes about 24 hours (a day)
Revolution – Earth moving around the sun (a year) 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds

3. Earth is tilted at an angle of about 23.5º
Earth’s tilt and revolution around the sun produces seasons.
Solstices = when Earth is most tilted toward the sun
Equinoxes = when Earth is not tilted toward the sun

4. Moon Phases – different shapes that the moon appears to have.
The moon goes through 8 phases as it revolves around Earth once every 27.3 days.

5. Solar Eclipse = moon casts a shadow on Earth

6. Lunar Eclipse = Earth casts a shadow on the moon

7. Tides = changes in ocean water levels that take place in a regular pattern. (pull of gravity between moon and Earth.
Tides usually change four times each day.

8. Solar System Objects
Solar System – includes the sun and all objects in space that are affected by the sun’s gravity.

9. Sun
-a medium size star
-loses energy by emitting light

10. Terrestrial planets – four inner planets having rocky surfaces Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars

11. Gas giants – four outer planets that have surfaces made of a kind of slush that forms their gaseous atmospheres. Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

12. Gas giants are larger than the terrestrial planets.
Scale model of sizes of planets

13. Moon = a natural satellite
Satellite = object that stays in an orbit around a planet

14. Asteroid – large irregularly shaped rocks
Comet – mixture of frozen gases and tiny particles of dust (tail points away from sun)
Solar wind – particles from the sun
Meteor – streak of light formed by a space rock burning up as it plunges into Earth’s atmosphere
asteroid
Comet Hale-Bopp
Meteor Crater, Arizona