1. Goal: To understand the very basics of Astronomy. Objectives: 1)To brainstorm what is in the night sky. 2)To be familiar with some useful Astronomy terms.

2. What can you find in the night sky with your naked eye?

3. What can you find in the night sky? Stars (Constellations) Galaxies Planets Satellites (man made) The Moon Asteroids Comets Meteors Aurorae Nebulae

4. One commonly misunderstood Astronomy term: What is a light year? Is it a measure of time or of distance?

5. Useful Astronomy Terms (distance) Light year = distance light travels in a year (6 trillion miles) AU or Astronomical Unit = 93 million miles (distance from the earth to the sun). 1 meter = 3.3 feet 1 km = 1000 m = 0.6 miles 1 cm = 0.01 m = 0.4 inches

6. Very important for our solar system Astronomical Unit (AU) This is the distance between the Earth and the Sun (93 million miles).

7. How far from the sun is the Earth? A) 0.1 AU B) 1 AU C) 10 AU D) the distance from the sun to the Earth is only known in miles not in AU

8. More Useful Astronomy Terms 1 kg = 1000 grams = 2.205 lbs on surface of the earth 1 Earth Mass = 6 * 10 24 kg ~ 6 sextillion tons 1 degree K (Kelvin) = 1 degree C = 1.8 degrees F = a unit of temperature 32 F = 0 C = 273 K (freezing pt of water) 0 K = absolute zero. Speed of Light = c = 3 * 10 8 m/s

9. Conclusion: We have listed all the items to be found in the night sky; most of which will be discussed later in the course. We have examined the most common Astronomy terms that will be used in this course.